Prime Minister

Scotland

Pamela Nash: To ask the Prime Minister, when he last visited Scotland.

Mr David Cameron: Details of my visits within the United Kingdom are published on the gov.uk website.

Foreign Relations: Israel

Jim Shannon: To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart since the recent elections in that country on relations between the UK and Israel.

Mr David Cameron: I spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 23 March 2015. A record is available on the gov.uk website here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-call-with-prime-minister-netanyahu-23-march-2015

Department for Work and Pensions

Access to Work Programme

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost of the Access to Work scheme in (a) Airdrie and Shotts constituency, (b) North Lanarkshire, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK has been in each month since May 2010.

Mr Mark Harper: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

National Insurance

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many national insurance numbers are currently issued in the UK.

Esther McVey: The latest available figures (Feb 2015) show approximately 89.2 million National Insurance number (NINo) records on the Department’s Customer Information System (CIS). These consist of: · 67.1 million – Live Adult NINo records · 22.1 million – Deceased Adult NINo records The number of National Insurance numbers held on CIS is always higher than the UK population. This is because once allocated, a National Insurance number remains on the Department’s computer system. This includes both deceased records and where an individual who has been allocated a National Insurance number leaves this country. This is because the National Insurance number provides a permanent numerical link between the individual and their National Insurance Contribution Record which determines entitlement to contributory benefits and State Pension.

Employment and Support Allowance

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason improving the mandatory reconsideration process was not included within the scope of his Department's employment and support allowance repeat claims project.

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of individuals previously entitled to claim employment and support allowance who will claim jobseeker's allowance following the changes proposed by the employment and support allowance repeat claims project.

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of individuals previously entitled to claim employment and support allowance who will be entitled to but will not claim jobseeker's allowance following the changes proposed by the employment and support allowance repeat claims project.

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support will be provided to people no longer entitled to claim employment and support allowance following the changes proposed by the employment and support allowance repeat claims project who are eligible for but do not claim jobseeker's allowance.

Mr Mark Harper: Mandatory reconsideration is an entirely separate process to the new arrangements for dealing with Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) repeat claims. No change to the mandatory reconsideration process is required as a result. We keep the mandatory reconsideration process under review with the aim to improving the process as necessary. No estimate has been undertaken of the number of individuals previously entitled to claim ESA who will claim Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) following the changes proposed by the ESA repeat claims project. The Department has made no specific estimate of the number of individuals previously entitled to ESA who would be entitled to JSA but choose not to claim it following the changes to the benefit rules. The Department does all that it can to encourage people found fit for work to claim JSA. ESA decision-makers make decision assurance calls which invite claimants to claim JSA where appropriate. Claimants are routed to the contact centre to discuss their claim with an agent. Where such calls are unsuccessful claimants are provided with a written notification of how to call the JSA contact centre to make a claim.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many fit for work decisions were overturned by mandatory reconsideration in each month since October 2008.

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many fit for work decisions overturned by mandatory reconsideration or appeal related to claimants with mental health difficulties in each month since October 2008.

Mr Mark Harper: The information requested is not available. DWP plans to look into what it might be possible to publish on mandatory reconsiderations in the existing regular statistical publications, including information on outcomes. Before decisions are made DWP statisticians need to make sure that the data is accurate and fit for purpose. When a decision has been made and as each publication is ready, we will pre-announce the improvements in 2015 in accordance with the UKSA release protocols.

Employment and Support Allowance: Appeals

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employment and support allowance claimants have received payment of that benefit pending an appeal since October 2008.

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time was that a claimant received payment of employment and support allowance pending appeal in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Mr Mark Harper: Published statistics show that between Q1 2009/10 (the earliest period statistics are available) and Q3 2014/15 (the latest period statistics are available), Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) received 1,096,732 Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) appeals. Whilst the vast majority of these claimants would have chosen to continue to receive a payment of ESA pending their appeal, some did choose to remain on Jobseeker’s Allowance. As the latter information is not available it is not possible to provide an exact answer. Historical information on the average length of time for appeals is not readily available. The most recently published HMCTS statistics state the average (mean) clearance time for Judge and Member ESA/Incapacity Benefit appeals was 22 weeks. Accordingly this would also be the average length of time of payment of ESA pending appeal.

Access to Work Programme

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what research his Department has carried out into the proportion of UK businesses who are aware of Access to Work funding which can help people with a disability start work, stay in work, move into self-employment or start a business; and what research his Department has carried out into the proportion of employers who are aware that Access to Work funding can be used to help those with mental health conditions, learning difficulties or disabilities, and autism.

Mr Mark Harper: The Department has not conducted research into the proportion of UK businesses who are aware of Access to Work funding or of the Access to Work Mental Health Service.

Independent Living Fund

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many personal assistants are employed under the Independent Living Fund.

Mr Mark Harper: The Independent Living Fund does not collect or record data on how many personal assistants are employed by its users, either directly or through an agency.

Access to Work Programme

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to increase the Access to Work budget upon the closure of the Independent Living Fund in June 2015.

Mr Mark Harper: The Independent Living Fund (ILF) provides direct cash payments to enable severely disabled people to purchase personal care or help with domestic duties from a care agency or a privately employed personal assistant. Following closure of the Fund in June 2015 funding and responsibility for former ILF users will transfer to local authorities in England and the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales. Access to Work provides support for disabled people in work or engaged in a work centred activity, it has limited overlap with the Independent Living Fund and no discernible budget impacts from this change.

Access to Work Programme

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria his Department applies to ensure the level of the Access to Work budget is responsive to need.

Mr Mark Harper: DWP operates a continuous planning cycle which incorporates forecast for demand, changes in economic indicators and resource requirements to deliver agreed service standards. Access to Work is part of this planning cycle. This planning process ensures Access to Work funding is set at a level that enables the scheme to meet existing customer demand and support new customers eligible for support.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which reports commissioned by his Department from external bodies between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 have not yet been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research so commissioned was; from which individual or body each such report was commissioned; what the value was of each report so commissioned; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Esther McVey: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Carer's Allowance

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in each of the English regions have been in receipt of Carer's Allowance in each of the last five years.

Mr Mark Harper: Information on Carer’s Allowance is published and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool  Guidance for users is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Carer's Allowance

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2014, Official Report, columns 275-6W, on carer's allowance, what the actual average clearance time was in working days for carer's allowance cases in the most recent period for which data is available.

Mr Mark Harper: The Actual Average Clearance Time (in working days) for Carers Allowance cases for February 14/15 YTD is 13.7 days

Social Security Benefits: Stockton on Tees

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the ONS nomis database, of the 350 people in Stockton-on-Tees who ceased to claim jobseeker's allowance in January 2015 for other reasons, how many of those people had sanctions placed on their entitlement claim.

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the ONS nomis database, of the 5,030 people in the North East who ceased to claim jobseeker's allowance in January 2015 for other reasons, how many of those people had sanctions placed on their entitlement claim.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employment and support allowance claimants in the work related activity group received (a) one sanction, (b) two sanctions and (b) three sanctions in 2014.

Esther McVey: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the longest duration of sanction imposed on a claimant in the work related activity group was in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014.

Esther McVey: The Department does hold information on the duration of benefit sanctions however the specific information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Employment Schemes

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have joined each of the three options in the Help to Work programme in each month since May 2014.

Esther McVey: Help to Work was introduced in April 2014. The Department for Work and Pensions intends to publish statistics on Help to Work and we are considering the date for publication.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many benefit sanctions were applied to claimants resident in (a) Airdrie and Shotts constituency, (b) North Lanarkshire, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK in each month since July 2010.

Esther McVey: The information we have for Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance adverse sanction decisions, by geography and reason, is published at:https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/ Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

Personal Independence Payment

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of personal independence payment claims in (a) Airdrie and Shotts constituency, (b) North Lanarkshire, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK in each month since April 2013 were disallowed pre-referral to the assessment providers; and how many such claims were disallowed due to the claimant not returning the Part 2 form within the time limit.

Mr Mark Harper: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Answer I gave the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West, Tom Greatrex, to his question UIN 223341, published on the Question and Answer system on 4 February. Latest Great Britain figures relating to the number of claims disallowed pre-referral to the assessment providers for both PIP new claims and reassessments were published on 18 March as part of our quarterly PIP official statistics release and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-independence-payment-statistics, and in particular table 2Bi of the data tables https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/412878/tables-pip-statistics-apr-2013-to-jan-2015.xls.

Employment

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what research his Department has commissioned on links between securing a short-hours job and securing a longer-hours job; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will place in the Library the research his Department has commissioned on links between securing a short-hours job and a subsequent gain of longer-hours jobs.

Esther McVey: The Department has not commissioned any research specifically on this topic. We will consider the need to commission any such research alongside future Departmental evidence requirements.

Employment and Support Allowance

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training is provided to GPs and other healthcare professions on completing the ESA 50 form; and what steps his Department is taking to monitor and update that training.

Mr Mark Harper: The ESA 50 is completed by claimants with help from a friend, relative, carer or representative such as a support worker if needed. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/408008/esa-50-capability-for-work-questionnaire.pdf Therefore no training is required or provided to GPs and other healthcare professions on completing it. Guidance and information for GPs and other healthcare professionals from the DWP can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/healthcare-practitioners-guidance-and-information-from-dwp

Personal Independence Payment

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time was that his Department took to process a personal independence payment from (a) a motor neurone disease sufferer and (b) another disabled person in the most recent period for which data is available.

Mr Mark Harper: The available information on average (median) clearance times, at a national level, has been published and is available from the Personal Independence Payment statistics home page: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-independence-payment-statistics. The requested level of disaggregation by disabling condition could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Children: Maintenance

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect on child poverty of the introduction of child maintenance service charges.

Steve Webb: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North, Catherine McKinnell, on 13 October 2014 to Question UIN 208928.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many fit for work decisions were overturned on appeal in each month since October 2008.

Mr Mark Harper: The information as requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Children: Maintenance

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the gender impact of the introduction of child maintenance service charges.

Steve Webb: The assessment of the gender impact of fees and charges for the new Child Maintenance Service was published in the Equality Impact Assessment for the Child Support Fees Regulations 2013. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/220219/eia-child-support-fees.pdf.

Social Security Benefits: Preston

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Preston constituency applied for hardship payments in 2014; and how many of those applications were successful.

Esther McVey: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) intends to publish figures on the number of hardship applications and awards in May 2015. The date of publication will be announced shortly.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2015 to Question 226858 and with reference to his Department's response to the freedom of information requests 2014-79 and 2014-2282, whether his Department holds any quarterly or monthly data on the reasons for sanctions in such cases.

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2015 to Question 226839, whether quarterly or monthly data is now available on the number of adverse employment and support allowance sanction decisions broken down by the Summary International Classification of Diseases since January 2014; and what the reason was for each such sanction.

Mr Mark Harper: Information on the number of adverse employment and support allowance sanction decisions broken down by the Summary International Classification of Diseases since January 2014 will shortly be published as part of a response to a Freedom of Information request here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistical-foi-releases   I can confirm that the Department does hold monthly data detailing the reasons for sanctions in such cases.

Personal Independence Payment

Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people who received the higher rate of the mobility component of disability living allowance have been assessed for personal independence payment (PIP) and not been awarded the enhanced mobility rate of PIP.

Mr Mark Harper: The latest available data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claims in payment, registrations, clearances and awards for both new claims and reassessed claims (for those previously in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA)) are published on Gov.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-independence-payment-statistics. In particular, breakdowns of reassessed claims in payment by type and rate of awards can be found at https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/ The Department intends to provide more detailed breakdowns of DLA to PIP reassessment outcomes in due course. The Department is working to guidelines set by the UK Statistics Authority to ensure we are able to publish statistics that meet high quality standards at the earliest opportunity.

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 19 February 2015 from the right hon. Member for Manchester Gorton with regards to Nurv Saadi.

Steve Webb: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), replied on the 25 March 2015.

Universal Credit

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, under what conditions married women can claim universal credit in their own right.

Mr Mark Harper: Under Universal Credit couples in the same household must make a joint claim. Payment is normally once a month into a bank account nominated by the couple, which could be a joint or an individual account. Where there is financial abuse that is affecting the rest of the family, or other more fundamental problems such as domestic violence, we have the ability to split the payment between partners, allowing each claimant to receive a separate payment.

Scotland

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times he and Ministers in his Department visited Scotland in each year since May 2010.

Steve Webb: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on the 03 July 2014 to Question UIN 202811. Since the last Question given on the 03 July 2014 Minister for Pensions Rt. Hon. Steve Webb MP attended the Gleneagles Conference in September 2014 and Minister for Disabled People Mark Harper MP attended the Commonwealth Games in July 2014.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what conditions are placed on jobseeker's allowance claimants who are in receipt of new enterprise grants.

Esther McVey: A person in receipt of a New Enterprise Allowance weekly allowance is no longer registered as unemployed. However, as a condition of receiving the allowance the recipient is required at the 6, 12 and 19 week stage to provide evidence of trading. If they are unable to do this the allowance may be withdrawn.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is provided to people on jobseeker's allowance who are setting up their own businesses.

Esther McVey: New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) is the main support provided by DWP to those who are setting up their own business. The scheme has successfully helped set up over 65,000 new businesses. A participant accepted onto the scheme will receive support from a business mentor to help develop their ideas and through the early stages of trading. If their business plan is approved they may receive a weekly allowance over 26 weeks worth up to £1,274. Participants may also apply for an unsecured loan through the Start-up loan scheme if they need start-up capital.

Home Office

Temporary Employment

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many agency staff are employed in (a) her Department, (b) the Passport Office, (c) UK Visas Immigration and (d) the Border Force.

James Brokenshire: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 16 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The number of agency workers employed by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 1.The number of full-time equivalent staff employed and the projected staffing levels for March 2015 broken down by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 2.The information provided for staff and agency workers in post is as at 31st January 2015.The Home Department is currently finalising projected staffing levels for 2015-16 as part of the annual planning round so projected levels beyond March 2015 are not yet available.   


Agency workers and the full-time employed
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.08 KB)




NEW TABLES
(Excel SpreadSheet, 38.5 KB)

James Brokenshire: The number of agency workers employed by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 1.The number of full-time equivalent staff employed and the projected staffing levels for March 2015 broken down by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 2.The information provided for staff and agency workers in post is as at 31st January 2015.The Home Department is currently finalising projected staffing levels for 2015-16 as part of the annual planning round so projected levels beyond March 2015 are not yet available.   


Agency workers and the full-time employed
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.08 KB)




NEW TABLES
(Excel SpreadSheet, 38.5 KB)

Staff

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many full-time equivalent staff there are in (a) her Department, (b) the Passport Office, (c) the Border Force and (d) UK Visas and Immigration; and what the projected staffing levels are for each such body for (i) March 2015, (ii) November 2015, (iii) March 2016 and (iv) November 2016.

James Brokenshire: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 16 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The number of agency workers employed by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 1.The number of full-time equivalent staff employed and the projected staffing levels for March 2015 broken down by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 2.The information provided for staff and agency workers in post is as at 31st January 2015.The Home Department is currently finalising projected staffing levels for 2015-16 as part of the annual planning round so projected levels beyond March 2015 are not yet available.   


Agency workers and the full-time employed
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.08 KB)




NEW TABLE
(Excel SpreadSheet, 38.5 KB)

James Brokenshire: The number of agency workers employed by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 1.The number of full-time equivalent staff employed and the projected staffing levels for March 2015 broken down by (a) the Home Department, (b) Her Majesty’s Passport Office, (c) UK Visas and Immigration and (d) Border Force is provided in Table 2.The information provided for staff and agency workers in post is as at 31st January 2015.The Home Department is currently finalising projected staffing levels for 2015-16 as part of the annual planning round so projected levels beyond March 2015 are not yet available.   


Agency workers and the full-time employed
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.08 KB)




NEW TABLE
(Excel SpreadSheet, 38.5 KB)

Reptiles: Import Controls

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many seizures of reptiles there were by the Border Force under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014; how many individual animals were so seized in each such year; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



The data requested on the seizures of reptiles by Border Force can be found in the below table: Seizure YearNumber of SeizuresQuantity Seized201394772014161232

Asylum: Syria

Mr Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) referred to the UK's Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and (b) successfully resettled in the UK under the Vulnerable Persons Relocation scheme in each year since 2013.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given on 2 March 2015 to Parliamentary Question 224609.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within her Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Karen Bradley: Table 1 shows the average hourly pay of civil servants in the Home Office as of 28th February 2015 by ethnicity.Other than at Senior Civil Servant (SCS) level the Home Office have different pay scales for London and National at all grades. 78.2 % of the staff below SCS declaring themselves Black and Minority Ethnic are based in London compared with 33.2 % of staff below SCS declaring themselves White. This explains why (apart from SCS staff) the hourly rate for BME staff is higher than for white staff.   



Average hourly pay of civil servants
(Excel SpreadSheet, 13.17 KB)

North Korea

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the comments of 20 March 2015 by the North Korea Ambassador to the UK, what assessment she has made of the safety of refugees from North Korea.

James Brokenshire: The Government has noted the remarks made by the Ambassador. All asylum and human rights claims including those made by North Koreans are, and will continue to be, considered on their individual merits in accordance with our obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and against the background of the latest available country information and caselaw.

Immigration

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what arrangements her Department plans to put in place to deal after Dissolution with (a) deportation orders and (b) other immigration cases raised by hon. Members.

James Brokenshire: Following the dissolution of Parliament, the Government retains its responsibility to govern and Ministers remain in charge of their Departments. Deportation orders will therefore continue to be signed on behalf of the Secretary of State.Correspondence relating to individual immigration cases will be accepted by the Home Office from all parliamentary candidates with written authorisation from the constituent. Candidates should submit their enquiries in writing.

Entry Clearances: English Language

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons her Department has reduced the number of approved English test providers for people applying for a UK visa to two from 6 April 2015.

James Brokenshire: The number of approved English language test providers was determined following an open competition launched in October 2014. Following the significant abuse uncovered of some of the English Language Tests, I announced to Parliament on 24 June 2014 the intention to put in place new, strengthened arrangements. Only those providers that were able to meet and continue to meet our requirements have been awarded Concession Agreements to offer tests for immigration purposes from 6 April 2015.

Overseas Students: English Language

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to UK universities of reducing the number of approved English test providers for people applying for a UK visa to two from 6 April 2015.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office does not stipulate which institutions the approved provider should use to facilitate their tests so cannot comment on operational changes. The number of approved English language test providers for immigration purposes from 6 April 2015 was determined following an open competition that was launched in October 2014. We cannot comment on the totality of bids received but only those providers who were able to demonstrate that they can and will continue to meet our requirements have been awarded a concession.

Religious Buildings: Security

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 16 March 2015 to Question 226670, and with reference to paragraph 2.64 of the Budget 2015, what proportion of the additional funding will be for increased security funding for synagogues and mosques.

James Brokenshire: The Government works with the police to ensure the safety and security of all communities. Following recent attacks against individuals and Jewish community sites in Europe, there have been considerable efforts from the police, working with the community, to mitigate threats to Jewish interests in the UK. On 18 March the Prime Minister announced an additional £10.9 million of funding for protective security measures to further ensure the safety and security of the Jewish community, including at synagogues, Jewish schools and community sites. This was part of £23.9 million provided in the budget for 2015-16 for counter-terrorism and protective security measures. Ensuring that there is effective security at crowded places and potentially vulnerable sites remains a key priority for Government. We provide considerable advice and guidance to mosques, madrassahs and other Islamic centres. Monitoring of the security situation remains under constant review.

Human Trafficking

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the (a) accessibility of legal aid for victims of human trafficking and (b) number of matter starts available for victims to pursue compensation and immigration claims.

Karen Bradley: Victims of human trafficking can apply for civil legal aid for advice and representation in relation to immigration matters and for damages and employment claims arising from their trafficking exploitation. Through provisions in the Modern Slavery Bill, victims of slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour will also be eligible for civil legal aid in the same situations.The recent review of the National Referral Mechanism recommended that legal aid should be available from the point of referral. The Government has committed to piloting a range of changes to the National Referral Mechanism in light of recommendations made by the review, which will include the provision of legal aid at this earlier point.'Matter starts' are the mechanism used by the Legal Aid Agency to monitor the amount of work conducted by its legal aid providers and do not limit legal aid availability for applicants. Where they are eligible, victims of human trafficking will always be able to access legal aid.

Radicalism

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle extremism.

James Brokenshire: The Government takes extremism seriously and is committed to tackling it in all its forms. In 2011 the Home Secretary reformed the Prevent strategy to tackle the ideology behind the terrorist threat we face and made sure it tackled non-violent extremism as well as violent extremism. This Government also set up the Extremism Task Force (ETF) in July 2013 in the wake of the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby to consider what more we could do to deal with extremism. The ETF has driven forward a number of actions. The Home Secretary has excluded more hate preachers than ever before, nearly 90 since 2010. We have removed 61,000 pieces of terrorist related material since December 2013. We have created a new online tool to make it easier for the public to report extremist content. We have worked with over 250 mosques, 50 faith groups and 70 community groups. We have trained over 150,000 frontline public sector workers to identify and support those at risk of radicalisation.This week the Home Secretary outlined proposals for a new counter-extremism strategy to tackle the whole spectrum of extremism. The foundation of the strategy would is the proud promotion of British values.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which reports commissioned by her Department from external bodies between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 have not yet been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research so commissioned was; from which individual or body each such report was commissioned; what the value was of each report so commissioned; on what date each such report was received by her Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when she plans to publish each such report.

Karen Bradley: The available centrally held information is shown in the following table.   



Reports commissioned by the Home Department
(Excel SpreadSheet, 12.36 KB)

Police Community Support Officers: Blackpool

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police community support officers were registered full-time in Blackpool South constituency in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) January to March 2015.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not collect police workforce statistics for Blackpool South Constituency.The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the police workforce at police force area level but not more locally.The table provided contains data on the number of full-time police community support officers (headcount) employed by Lancashire Constabulary as at 31 March 2010 to 31 March 2014. Data for 2015 have not yet been collected centrally and will not be published until later this year.  Number of full-time police community support officers (headcount1) employed by Lancashire Constabulary as at 31 March 2010 to 31 March 20142   20102011201220132014Lancashire Constabulary411365383339268  1. These figures are provided on a headcount basis, they represent total number of police community support officers (headcount) less part-time officers (headcount).2. Police community support officer numbers with full-time/part-time breakdowns, by police force area, are published in the Police Workforce, England and Wales, statistical publications and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.

Police: Blackpool

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers (a) took voluntary redundancy, (b) retired before their statutory age in Blackpool in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013, (v) 2014 and (vi) January to March 2015.

Mike Penning: Figures on the number of police officers who took voluntary redundancy or retired before their statutory age are not collected centrally by the Home Office.However, the Home Office does collect statistics on the number of voluntary resignations, normal retirements and early medical retirements. Figures are only available at police force level and cannot be broken down further. Data for 2014/15 have not yet been collected centrally and will not be available until later this year.The table provided contains data on the number of full-time equivalent police officer voluntary resignations, normal retirements and early medical retirements for Lancashire Constabulary, from 2009/10 to 2013/14.   



Number of police officer voluntary resignations 
(Excel SpreadSheet, 10.67 KB)

Mephedrone: Hampshire

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the changes in the rate of mephedrone use in the (a) Gosport and Fareham area and (b) UK.

Lynne Featherstone: Data specifically on the Gosport and Fareham area is not available as the Crime Survey for England and Wales does not allow sufficiently robust estimates to be made for smaller geographic areas. For England and Wales as a whole, the 2013/14 Crime Survey for England and Wales showed that the proportion of people aged 16 to 59 who said they had taken mephedrone in the last year was 0.6 per cent. This compares with 1.3 per cent in the 2010/11 survey. The table shows figures for each year available. Mephedrone was not specifically asked about in the survey before 2010/11. Proportion of 16 to 59 year olds reporting use of mephedrone in the last year, 2010/11 to 2013/14England and Wales, 2013/14 CSEW  Percentages 2010/111.3 2011/121.0 2012/130.5 2013/140.6 Source: 2013/14 Crime Survey for England and Wales

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she intends to reply to the letter to her dated 19 February 2015 from the right hon. Member for Manchester Gorton with regards to Mr J Holloway.

James Brokenshire: I will reply to the Right hon. Member by 27 March 2015.

Passports

Mr Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's policy is on (a) the issue of passports and (b) legal recognition for those who do not associate with a particular gender; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: We understand the concerns of those people who do not associate with a particular gender. UK law recognises only male and female gender and to introduce a third category denoted by an ‘X’ would require a change in primary legislation. We would not envisage the passport being changed in isolation without legislative change, as there would be an impact on other areas such as sex discrimination, nationality, adoption, human embryology, immigration, and gender recognition. Such a change would need to be on the basis that it was required by law, that it provided additional benefits to the applicant, and that the high standards of public and personal safety achieved by the UK passport were not diluted. We continue to monitor the situation and work with colleagues and interested parties in the UK and internationally. However, there are no current plans to change domestic legislation to add to or remove the male and female gender, or to make this change to the passport process

Asylum

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the capability of each local authority to accommodate the number of asylum seekers dispersed to those areas.

James Brokenshire: Agreements between the Government and local authorities are voluntary and have been in place since the last Government set them up in 2000. Accommodation providers are contractually required to liaise and consult with local authorities to ensure that the impacts of dispersal have been fully assessed. Providers will take into account the cultural compatibility of the environment; capacity of local health, education and other support services; concentration of service users; and the assessment of social tension risks.This work is formally supported through Strategic Migration Partnerships; local authority-led partnerships with the Home Office and accommodation providers, established as a forum for managing the dispersal of asylum seekers to local authorities.

Criminal Proceedings: Diplomatic Immunity

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number and proportion of criminal cases which could not proceed owing to diplomatic immunity in each of the last three years.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not collect data centrally from police forces on the number of criminal cases which cannot proceed owing to diplomatic immunity.

Northern Ireland Office

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within her Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: It is not possible to provide a breakdown in the form requested as to do so may lead to the identification of individuals within my Department. I am however able to provide the average hourly rates for each grade in my Department, which are as follows: GradeAverage Hourly Pay (£)SCS40.79A24.03B18.70C15.71D13.15E10.84F8.45

Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will ask the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland to publish guidance on the circumstances in which he will investigate complaints relating to incidents which occurred over one year ago.

Mrs Theresa Villiers: Responsibility for the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland lies with the Department of Justice.

Department of Health

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

George Freeman: The average hourly rates of pay by grade for individuals identified as White or White British and those from a Black, Asian or other minority group, in the Department, as at 28 February 2015 is presented in the table below.   GradeAverage Hourly Rate of Pay Overall by Grade£White or White British£Black, Asian or other minority group  £AO10.010.110.0EO12.412.212.6HEO14.714.515.1Fast Stream14.114.114.3SEO18.318.218.8Grade 724.224.224.0Grade 630.730.830.7SCS39.639.233.8   7% of civil servants had taken the option of not declaring their Ethnic Background as at 28 February 2015.

Carers: Pendle

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many family members looking after a relative at home were registered as carers with Pendle Borough Council in (a) April 2010 and (b) each subsequent April.

Norman Lamb: The data are not available as requested.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Mr John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has received on the efficacy of vaccinating adolescent boys against human papillomavirus and the timetable for reaching a decision on the matter.

Jane Ellison: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has received published and unpublished evidence on the efficacy of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in males.   The JCVI will only be in a position to make a decision on whether to recommend extending the HPV vaccination programme to adolescent boys once it is satisfied that it has reviewed and considered all the necessary evidence and information, including the potential impact and cost-effectiveness of such a programme.

Domestic Accidents: Pendle

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many falls (a) at home and (b) in total were recorded by health and social care providers in Pendle constituency in 2010 and each subsequent year.

Norman Lamb: The information is not available in the format requested. Data is only held in relation to falls which lead to a hospital admission. We have provided a count of finished admission episodes where an external cause of fall was recorded.   Count of finished admission episodes (FAEs)1 where an external cause2 of fall was recorded, for Pendle parliamentary constituency3, 2010-11 to 2013-144   Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector  YearFAEs  2010-11760  2011-12790  2012-13709  2013-14750 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre  1Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period.2External cause codes Falls are categorised by the following external cause codes:  W00 Fall on same level involving ice and snow W01 Fall on same level from slipping tripping and stumbling W02 Fall involving ice-skates skis roller-skates or skateboards W03 Other fall same level due collision/pushing by another person W04 Fall while being carried or supported by other persons W05 Fall involving wheelchair W06 Fall involving bed W07 Fall involving chair W08 Fall involving other furniture W09 Fall involving playground equipment W10 Fall on and from stairs and steps W11 Fall on and from ladder W12 Fall on and from scaffolding W13 Fall from out of or through building or structure W14 Fall from tree W15 Fall from cliff W16 Diving/jumping into water causing injury other than drowning or submersion W17 Other fall from one level to another W18 Other fall on same level W19 Unspecified fall3Parliamentary constituency of residence The parliamentary constituency containing the patient’s normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another parliamentary constituency for treatment. This field is only available from 2009-10 onwards.4Assessing growth through time (Admitted patient care) Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information. Note that HES include activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013.

Health Services: Lancashire

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what NHS spending per head of population in East Lancashire has been in each of the last two years.

George Freeman: The information is not available in the format requested.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many non-admitted patients had been waiting for over (a) 18, (b) 26 and (c) 52 weeks for treatment in each NHS and NHS foundation trust in each month since May 2010.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, in respect of how many patients referral to treatment pathways were recorded as incomplete in each NHS and NHS foundation trust in each month since May 2010.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many admitted patients waited over (a) 18, (b) 26 and (c) 52 weeks for treatment in each NHS and NHS foundation trust since May 2010.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which NHS trusts have failed to meet their referral to treatment targets since May 2010; and in what months each such failure occurred.

Jane Ellison: The information requested is attached. 



Referral to treatment
(Excel SpreadSheet, 567.62 KB)

Drugs: Misuse

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the level of substance abuse by teenagers.

Jane Ellison: The Department jointly leads, with the Home Office, the Reducing Demand strand of the Government’s 2010 Drug Strategy ‘Reducing demand, restricting supply, building recovery: supporting people to live a drug-free life'. The third annual review of the drug strategy published last month highlights recent and planned developments in our programme of work to create resilience amongst those who do not take drugs and to support those that do misuse drugs to stop.   The strategy includes universal actions aimed at all young people, and targeted actions for those most at risk of using drugs or who have already started using drugs, and tackles the range of risk factors that make people vulnerable to substance misuse. Key elements of the strategy are:   - Talk to FRANK, which provides up-to-date impartial information and advice about drugs and how to resist them; - ‘Rise Above’, recently launched by Public Health England (PHE), which is an online resource and social movement for young people, designed to build their resilience and empower them to make positive choices for their health; - Helping schools to draw on expert advice and develop evidence-based practice, including funding the Alcohol and Drug Education and Prevention Information Service (ADEPIS), run by Mentor UK; and - PHE providing support for the development of Joint Strategic Needs Assessments by local areas to help ensure that young people’s substance misuse services target vulnerable young people.

Video Games: Children

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will commission research on the long-term effects of video game addiction on primary school-aged children.

Norman Lamb: We have no plans to commission further research into video game addiction.   Children who spend more time on computers, watching television and playing video games tend to experience higher levels of emotional distress, anxiety and depression. This relationship is particularly negative among those who engage in high levels of screen use (more than four hours a day).   Following an in-depth look at mental health and wellbeing support for children and young people, the Government has set out a blueprint for improving care over the next five years. The Government report of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Well-Being Taskforce’s findings, Future in mind, published on 17 March 2015, sets out a clear national ambition in the form of key aspirations that the Government would wish to see by 2020.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to provide support and assistance to the families of chronic alcoholics.

Jane Ellison: Health and Wellbeing Boards bring together councils, the National Health Service and local communities to understand local needs and priorities, which are expressed in the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. This should include the need for support to families of those in alcohol treatment.   Public Health England has funded the “Alcohol and other Drug use: The Roles and Capabilities of Social Workers” guidance which sets out the key roles for social workers in relation to substance misuse.   One of the social workers’ three key roles is “to motivate people to consider changing their problematic substance using behaviour and support them (and their families and carers) in their efforts to do so”.   The 2014 Care Act also makes provision for carers to be entitled to an assessment to have their needs met.

Ambulance Services: Sick Leave

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the level of sickness and absence of 999 ambulance call handlers was in (a) England and (b) the North East Ambulance Service area in the last year.

George Freeman: The level of sickness in the last year (November 2013 to October 2014) for ambulance service clerical and administrative staff which includes 999 call handlers was: (a) 6.3% for England and (b) 7.5% for the North East Ambulance Service.   Information on the level of absence for 999 ambulance call handlers is not available centrally.   Notes:  1. Sickness absence rate is calculated by dividing the sum total sickness absence days (including non-working days) by the sum total days available per month for each member of staff.   2. While lower sickness absence figures, in general, indicate lower levels of sickness absence it should be noted that lower figures can also indicate under reporting of sickness absence.   3. Data presented is full-time equivalent days lost to sickness absense including non-working days.   4. The latest sickness absence data available from the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) is to the end of October 2014 so the latest available full year figures would be from the previous November.   Data Quality: The HSCIC seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality where changes impact on figures already published. This is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses.   Source: HSCIC Processed using data taken from the Electronic Staff Record Data Warehouse

Dermatology

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department's (a) direct and (b) indirect involvement in (i) the procurement of dermatology services from Nottingham University Hospitals Trust to Circle in 2007 and (ii) the reprocurement of those services in 2012; and whether that involvement was in an advisory capacity.

George Freeman: The original contract for the Nottingham Treatment Centre was signed in July 2005 between the Secretary of State for Health, the local primary care trusts (PCTs) and Circle after approval of a business case for the scheme by the Department. The services provided by the Treatment Centre include dermatology. The Treatment Centre became operational in July 2008 after construction completion.   The Department was not involved directly or indirectly in the reprocurement of the services. On 1 April 2013 the Department’s responsibility under the contract passed to NHS England. The reprocurement was managed locally by the clinical commissioning group and the local area team of NHS England; the contract was awarded to Circle after a competitive procurement process.

Parkinson's Disease

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been spent on the prescription of drugs to manage Parkinson's disease in each of the last five years.

George Freeman: Information on the cost of medicines to treat Parkinson’s disease for the last five financial years is shown in the following table. The table reflects community dispensing only, where the drugs are mainly dispensed.   Net ingredient cost (NIC) of medicines dispensed in England to treat Parkinson’s disease, as defined by British National Formulary sections 4.9.1 Dopaminergic drugs used in parkinsonism, and 4.9.2 antimuscarinic drugs used in parkinsonism. NIC (£000’s)2009/10118,374.32010/11121,860.52011/1299,650.22012/1398,958.42013/14100,865.2 Source: Prescription Cost Analysis provided by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (primary care)   NIC is the basic cost of a drug. It does not take account of discounts, dispensing costs, fees or prescription charges income.

Fractures

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average (a) length and (b) cost was of a finished admission episode for people admitted to hospitals with fragility fractures in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: Data concerning the average length and cost of a finished admission episode for people admitted to hospitals with fragility fractures in each of the last five years is not held centrally.   Clinical coders at the Health and Social Care Information Centre have advised that it is not possible to identify fragility fractures from the ICD10 classification of diseases used in the Hospital Episode Statistics database, therefore the cost cannot be identified.

Smoking

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services, England - April 2014 to September 2014, published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre in January 2015, what assessment he has made of the factors that have contributed to the decline in the number of people who have reported stopping smoking through an NHS Stop Smoking Service.

Jane Ellison: Whilst no formal assessment has been made of the reduction in the numbers accessing local stop smoking services, as the proportion of the population who smoke declines, there will be a smaller pool of people who might choose to access these services.   Electronic cigarettes (or nicotine vapourisers) have become an increasingly popular way of quitting.

Hearing Impairment

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients waited more than six weeks for (a) an initial NHS hearing assessment and (b) a follow-up NHS hearing aid assessment in each of the last five years.

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2014, Official Report, columns 769-70W, on cochlear implants, how many cochlear operations there were in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15 to date; and what the ages were of the patients who had those operations.

Norman Lamb: Information concerning the number of patients who waited more than six weeks for an initial NHS hearing assessment and a follow-up NHS hearing aid assessment in each of the last five years is not available. Audiology is not one of the key referral to treatment functions which are recorded as a data set.   In the following table, we have provided a count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) with a primary or secondary operative procedure of 'operation on cochlea' by five year age brackets for the years 2013-14, and provisional data for April to November 2014-15.   It should be noted that FCEs are not the number of patients because one patient may have had more than one episode of care within the time period.   Age2013-142014-15  April to November provisional0-43462195-9956510-14893515-19473520-24311225-29252330-34261635-39462340-44492845-49313050-54433155-59343560-64533265-69604470-74543875-79463880+4632Unknown30Total1,124736   Source: Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) Health and Social Care Information Centre.  Notes:   1. A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year.   2. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information. HES figures includes activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013.   3. The data for 2014-15 is provisional and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made. Counts produced from provisional data are likely to be lower than those generated for the same period in the final dataset. This shortfall will be most pronounced in the final month of the latest period, ie November from the (month 9) April to November extract. It is also probable that clinical data are not complete, which may in particular affect the last two months of any given period. There may also be errors due to coding inconsistencies that have not yet been investigated and corrected.

Cancer: Drugs

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prescriptions have been issued for the drug Sunitinib in each of the last three years; and what restrictions his Department places on the use of that drug in the NHS.

George Freeman: Sunitinib (Sutent) is mainly used in hospitals, where usage is recorded in volumes rather than numbers of prescription items. The table below provides the published figures for use of sunitinib in the National Health Service in England in milligrams of active ingredient.2011-12mgs2012-13mgs2013-14mgs2014-15(Q1 only)mgsSunitinib total mgs12,263,8859,671,9418,273,6232,157,054 Source: NICE Technology Appraisals in the NHS in England, Innovation Scorecard   It is for NHS England and local clinical commissioning groups to make decisions on which drugs and treatments should be funded by the NHS taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).   NICE has issued technology appraisal guidance that recommends sunitinib as a first-line treatment for patients with advanced and/or metastatic renal cell carcinoma meeting specified clinical criteria and for patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumours meeting specified clinical criteria. NICE does not recommend sunitinib for the second-line treatment of renal cell carcinoma.   NHS commissioners are legally required to fund drugs and treatments recommended in NICE technology appraisal guidance within three months of NICE’s final guidance. Sunitinib is also available to patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine carcinomas through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Strokes

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will recommend to NICE that it updates the EQ5D methodology to better represent meaningful quality of life measures used in assessing cost-effectiveness for interventions that could affect the long-term survival of stroke patients with associated disability.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is responsible for the development of the methods it uses in the development of its guidance. NICE reviews its methods and processes periodically, including consultation with stakeholders, to ensure that they remain appropriate. Ministers are able to refer topics to NICE to be included in their work programme.

Hearing Impairment

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the NHS has spent on audiology services in each of the last five years.

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the NHS has spent on (a) hearing aids, (b) cochlear hearing aids and (c) bone anchored hearing aids in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: Information on spend for audiology services and specific procedures for hearing problems are not available in the format requested. The following table provides NHS programme budgeting figures on ‘problems of hearing’ for the five year period 2008-09 to 2012-13, which is the latest available data.   Year2008-092009-102010-112011-122012-13Expenditure (£ billion)0.420.500.450.460.46   More information about programme budgeting data can be found on the NHS England website at the following link:   http://www.england.nhs.uk/resources/resources-for-ccgs/prog-budgeting/

General Practitioners: Training

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many training places for general practice were (a) commissioned and (b) filled in 2014-15 to date.

George Freeman: The Government has mandated Health Education England (HEE) to provide national leadership on education, training and workforce development in the National Health Service in England.   In 2014-15 HEE commissioned 3,067 general practitioner (GP) specialty training posts, and 2,688 were filled.   Our mandate to HEE requires them to ensure a minimum of 3,250 trainees per year are recruited to GP training programmes in England by 2016. There are now 36,294 full time equivalent GPs working and training in the NHS, an increase of over 1,000 since September 2010.   In January, a £10 million investment was announced to kick start a new plan to expand the general practice workforce. The plan covers a wide range of measures to recruit more aspiring medical students to take up a career in general practice, retain those doctors already working there, and provide support for those GPs who have taken a career break to get back into work.

General Practitioners: Working Hours

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his contribution of 13 May 2013, Official Report, column 351, on health and social care, in what year he plans to end the ability of GPs to opt out of providing out-of-hours care.

George Freeman: Since the introduction of the revised GP contract in 2004, general practitioners (GPs) have been able to opt out of responsibility for providing out-of-hours care.   GP practices who provide out-of-hours services must meet the quality requirements set out in “National Quality Standards in the Delivery of out-of-hours services.” In order to bring back greater GP responsibility for their patients, from April 2014, under the terms of their contracts, where GPs do not provide out-of-hours services the practice must monitor the quality of out-of-hours services which are offered or provided to their patients having regard to the above guidance, act upon any concerns arising and report any concerns that they may have about the quality of these services.

Midwives: Training

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department and NHS England have taken to ensure that Grade 5 training opportunities are available for midwives.

George Freeman: The Government has mandated Health Education England (HEE) to provide national leadership on education, training and workforce development in the National Health Service. This mandate includes a commitment that HEE will ensure midwifery training produces midwives with the required competencies to practise in the new NHS.   It is ultimately the responsibility of individual employers to support the development of the staff they employ. However, as part of its core remit HEE will work with Local Education and Training Boards, regulatory bodies and healthcare providers to ensure professional and personal development continues beyond the end of formal training.

Hospitals: Older People

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the causes of increases in the number of hospital admissions of older people for cold-related illnesses since 2012.

Norman Lamb: A greater number of people die, or are admitted to hospital, during the winter than any other time of year. There are, on average, around 25,000 excess winter deaths each year in England; for every one excess winter death it has been estimated that there are approximately eight extra hospital admissions.   The causes of excess winter death and illness are complex and interlinked, and include circulating diseases such as influenza, cold temperatures and wider determinants of health, such as poor housing. It is difficult to precisely attribute the relative impacts of each on overall levels of death and illness and there is a degree of variation year on year.   Cold weather directly increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, lung disease, flu, falls and injuries and hypothermia. Indirect effects of cold include mental health illnesses such as depression, risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if appliances are poorly maintained or poorly ventilated, and disruption to service provision. Some groups, such as older people, very young children, and people with serious medical conditions are particularly vulnerable to the effects of cold weather.   Public Health England publishes the Cold Weather Plan for England to avoid preventable illness and deaths in winter by setting out a series of actions for organisations, communities and individuals, to take throughout the year.

Mental Illness: Suicide

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients discharged from mental health in-patient care have taken their own life within (a) one week and (b) two weeks of that discharge in each year since 2010; and how many investigations have been undertaken into those deaths.

Norman Lamb: The first three months after discharge remain a time of particularly high suicide risk – this is especially true in the first 1-2 weeks. Between 2002 and 2012 there were 3,225 suicides in the United Kingdom by mental health patients in the post-discharge period, 18% of all patient suicides.   Post-discharge suicides were most frequent in the first week after leaving hospital when 380 deaths occurred, an average of 35 per year.   The number and proportion who died in the first week after discharge has not changed over the report period.   380 of the 3,225 people counted as post-discharge suicides between 2002-12 died in the first week after leaving hospital. 292 people died in the second week.   The total number of people who died within three months of in-patient discharge is, as follows:   2010: 202 2011: 220 2012: 177 (estimate)   We have reviewed the serious incident framework (due to be launched for April 2015) to support better recognition, reporting and investigation of serious incidents (which would include suicide/ self-inflicted death, but also other serious incidents affecting people with mental health needs). We are also exploring changes to the Serious Incident reporting system (STEIS) database to enable incidents, risks, trends and opportunities for learning to be more easily identified.   This Government is seeking to change the culture that suicide is inevitable for some people. In January this year the Deputy Prime Minister announced our ambition for ‘zero suicides’. This set out an aspiration for every part of the NHS to commit to a ‘zero suicide’ ambition. This ambition has already been adopted in some local areas and we are certain that this kind of approach can work to dramatically reduce suicides.   Pioneering work in Liverpool, the South-West and in the East of England means that health workers are already focusing on how they care for people with mental health conditions with a view to preventing suicide. The Deputy Prime Minister called on the health service to look at this work being done by these three pioneering areas.

Hearing Impairment

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS patients have had a hearing test in (a) an audiology clinic, (b) an ear, nose and throat clinic and (c) an audiology department at a local hospital in each of the last five years.

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) children and (b) adults in each region of England were fitted with cochlear hearing aids in each of the last five years.

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) children and (b) adults in England were fitted with bone anchored hearing aids in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The data is not available in the format requested. Since data for local area teams is not available prior to 2010-11 we have only provided a four year time series for this data.   We have provided a count of finished consultant episodes (FCE) with a primary or secondary operative procedure of 'cochlear implant' for children (0-17) and adults (18+) by NHS England local area team from 2010-11 to 2013-14. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. This information has been attached.   Data concerning the number of NHS patients who have had a hearing test in an audiology clinic, an ear, nose and throat clinic of an audiology department at a local hospital in each of the last five years is not collected. The vast majority of this activity is provided as outpatient care where the recording of procedure and intervention data is not mandated.   In the following table we have provided information concerning the number of FCEs with a main or secondary procedure of the fitting of a bone anchored hearing aid for children aged 0-17 and adults aged 18 and over, 2009-10 to 2013-144.   Age2009-102010-112011-122012-132013-140-1719015617519520018+9169571,0119171,111Unknown-12--   Source:   Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) Health and Social Care Information Centre   Notes:   1. ‘–‘ in the table represents no available data.   2. An FCE is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end.  3. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information. HES figures includes activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013. 



Finished consultant episodes of cochlear implants
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.77 KB)

Mental Health Services: Children

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2015 to Question 228266, what proportion of children and young people who were referred for early intervention treatment in psychosis services started that treatment within two weeks of that referral in the latest quarter for which data is available.

Norman Lamb: Data is not available on the proportion of children and young people who were referred for early intervention treatment in psychosis services and started treatment within two weeks of referral. This is because this information is not collected centrally.   The new Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Minimum Dataset will provide comparative data for NHS services that will be used to improve clinical quality and service efficiency; and to commission services in a way that improves health and reduces inequalities. Current plans are for data from the CAMHS Minimum Dataset to begin to flow no later than January 2016.  Achieving Better Access to Mental Health Services by 2020, published October 2014, introduces the first waiting time standards for mental health. It includes a standard which will ensure that by 2016 at least 50% of people of all ages referred for early intervention in psychosis services will start treatment within two weeks. This waiting time standard will come into effect from 1 April 2015. This is backed by £33 million investment.   The Deputy Prime Minister announced on 14 March that £250 million additional funding would be available each year, over the next Parliament, starting in April 2015. This will fund improved access for children and young people with mental health problems - at least 100,000 more children and young people will receive treatment by 2020 and the funding will pay for the introduction of new access and waiting time standards.   The Government report of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Well-Being Taskforce’s findings, Future in mind, published on 17 March 2015, sets out a clear national ambition in the form of key aspirations that the Government would wish to see by 2020. This includes more access and waiting time standards for services so that children and young people can expect prompt treatment when they need it, just as they can for physical health problems.

In Vitro Fertilisation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much was spent by his Department on the provision of in-vitro fertilisation in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison: This information is not collected centrally.

Parkinson's Disease

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many finished hospital episodes with a primary diagnosis of Parkinson's disease there were in England in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The following table provides a count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) where the primary diagnosis was Parkinson's disease, for the years 2009-10 to 2013-14.   These figures do not represent the number of different patients as the same person may have had more than one episode of care within any given time period. YearFCEs 2009-1010,847 2010-1111,029 2011-1210,685 2012-1311,189 2013-1411,246  Notes:   1. A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. 2. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. 3. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information. HES figures includes activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013.   Source: Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2015 to Question 227902, what assessment he has made of whether mental health services are adequately prioritised in clinical commissioning groups' spending plans.

Norman Lamb: NHS England published planning guidance for 2015/16 for commissioners which made the expectation clear that each clinical commissioning group’s (CCGs) spending on mental health services in 2015/16 should increase in real terms, and grow by at least the same percentage as each CCG’s allocation increase. CCGs will submit their commissioning plans for 2015/16 to NHS England later in the spring.   NHS England will assure CCG commissioning plans for 2015/16 after they have been submitted to ensure that they meet the expectation set out in the planning guidance, at that point NHS England and the Department will make an assessment of overall spending plans.

Parkinson's Disease

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much has been granted from the public purse for research into Parkinson's disease in each of the last five years.

George Freeman: The following table shows expenditure on research relating to Parkinson’s disease by the Medical Research Council, and by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) through its research programmes, research centres and units, and research fellowships.   £ million  2009/102010/112011/122012/132013/14Medical Research Council11.310.08.78.79.7NIHR1.71.52.23.24.0Total13.011.510.911.913.7   Total spend by the NIHR on research relating to Parkinson’s disease is higher than the figures shown because expenditure by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) on these diseases cannot be disaggregated from total CRN expenditure.

Ambulance Services

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the performance criteria are against which 999 ambulance call handlers are assessed.

Jane Ellison: Information is not held centrally on how each individual ambulance trust assesses and monitors the performance of 999 ambulance call handlers. Call handlers have an important role in the process to help achieve the three national ambulance response time standards for 999 calls that are classified as immediately life threatening. These are as follows:   - 75% of Category A Red 1 calls responded to within eight minutes, from the time the call is connected to the control room. Red 1 calls are the most time critical, covering cardiac arrest patients who are not breathing and do not have a pulse, and other severe conditions such as airway obstruction. - 75% of Category A Red 2 calls responded to within eight minutes, from the time that either (i) the chief complaint is identified, (ii) the call handler determines a priority response is required, or (iii) after 60 seconds has elapsed, whichever is the sooner. Red 2 calls are serious but less immediately time critical, covering conditions such as stroke and fits. - 95% of all Category A (Red 1 and Red 2) calls receive an ambulance capable of conveying the patient within 19 minutes.   Response time standards for non-life threatening calls are determined locally.

Ambulance Services

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many times ambulances were diverted from (a) Red 1 Call responses and (b) Red 2 Call responses in (i) England and (ii) the North East Ambulance Service area in the last 12 months.

Jane Ellison: This information is not held centrally.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the equality implications of making human papilloma virus vaccination available to men who have sex with men between the ages of 16 and 40, while women over the age of 18 are not able to access the vaccine.

Jane Ellison: The Government is advised on all immunisation matters by the independent expert Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The JCVI is currently considering possible extension of the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination programme to men who have sex with men (MSM) and to adolescent boys.   The JCVI has noted that if a targeted programme for MSM were to go ahead, then consideration would need to be given as to whether other groups should have access to HPV vaccination – for example, unimmunised women over 17 years of age.   A full equality impact assessment will be undertaken for any proposed changes to the HPV programme.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of NICE's decision not to appraise the drug ponatinib for chronic myeloid leukaemia; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the drugs available for chronic myeloid leukaemia patients who are intolerant or resistant to tyrosine-kinase inhibitor therapies.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) considered the suitability of ponatinib for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukaemia for referral to its technology appraisal work programme through the topic selection process in 2013-14. NICE concluded, following consultation with stakeholders, that a technology appraisal was not appropriate, noting that the likely eligible patient population was very small. Further information on the rationale for not referring this topic to NICE is available on the NICE website at:   http://www.nice.org.uk/about/what-we-do/our-programmes/nice-guidance/nice-technology-appraisal-guidance/block-scoping-reports   A number of treatments, including the drug bosutinib, are available through the Cancer Drugs Fund for patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia who are intolerant or resistant to other tyrosine-kinase inhibitor therapies.

Orphan Drugs

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to commit to the referral of ultra-orphan drugs to NICE Highly Specialised Technologies; and if he will give a target date for this action.

George Freeman: We have referred a number of high cost, low volume technologies to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for evaluation under its highly specialised technologies work programme. We will continue to do so for technologies that meet the specified criteria and where a NICE evaluation would add value. Only today, Ministers referred the drug Translarna (ataluren) for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, to NICE’s work programme.   Further information about the process by which topics are selected for referral to NICE’s highly specialised technologies work programme is available at:   www.nice.org.uk/about/what-we-do/our-programmes/topic-selection

Diseases

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to help early diagnosis of (a) lysosomal acid lipase deficiency and (b) other very rare diseases; and what research his Department has commissioned into innovative medicines for ultra-rare diseases which have a substantial medical impact.

Jane Ellison: The UK Strategy for Rare Diseases commits all four countries of the United Kingdom to work to achieve reduced times for diagnosis of rare diseases and to work with the National Health Service and clinicians to establish appropriate diagnostic pathways which are accessible to, and understood by, professionals and patients.   NHS England commissions a highly specialised service for liver disease in children, including cirrhosis resulting from lysosomal acid lipase deficiency, from three expert centres in London, Birmingham and Leeds. These long established centres provide a clear referral pathway for expert diagnosis and management and are well known to paediatricians across England.   The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds a range of research relating to medicines for very rare diseases. The NIHR Rare Diseases Translational Research Collaboration (TRC) provides world-class NHS research infrastructure to support fundamental discoveries and translational research on rare diseases. At its core, this TRC is formed from NIHR biomedical research centres and units, and NIHR clinical research facilities, all with research expertise into rare diseases, facilities and capacity. With investment of £20 million over four years, the NIHR Rare Diseases TRC will help to increase research collaboration across the NIHR infrastructure.   In March 2014, the Government launched the NIHR BioResource to provide a national cohort of healthy volunteers, patients and their relatives who wish to participate in experimental medicine research, the initial focus for the BioResource includes rare diseases. These studies will have the potential to rapidly advance the understanding of disease mechanisms, identify potential drug targets, and improve insight into the therapeutic potential and limitations of existing and emerging therapies.

Diabetes: Bristol

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the efficacy of the Food Freedom course offered to people with diabetes in Bristol and South Gloucestershire; and if he will take steps to increase take-up of that course.

Jane Ellison: The provision of local health services is the responsibility of local NHS commissioners.   We are advised by NHS England that Bristol Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and South Gloucestershire CCG jointly commission courses for people with type 1 diabetes.   The CCGs confirm regular reports from Bristol Community Health about Diabetes Structured Education in Bristol are received, which informs the commissioning cycle, including the new Diabetes Programme Board in its planning for transformation of Diabetes services across Bristol.   We understand that the reports look at course provision generally, equity of access, course content, and recommendations for increased access and consequent increased take-up to improve outcomes.   The CCGs are planning to take additional actions through 2015-16 to increase the number of people accessing Food Freedom courses, such as delivering the courses through new formats and approaches. In addition the CCGs confirms they are reviewing how the service is supporting different communities and are undertaking a wider review. This is to look at the uptake of patients from referrals to attending the course.

Nurses: Training

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many training posts for nurses were commissioned in England in each year from 1989-90 to 1997-98.

George Freeman: The following table provides information on the number of pre-registration nurse training places that were commissioned for the years 1996-97 and 1997-98. The Department does not hold data prior to this date.   YearNumber of places commissioned1996-9714,3251997-9815,743   Source: Data provided to the Department of Health by the commissioners of pre-registration training

NHS: Bureaucracy

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average number of hours spent on administrative tasks each week by (a) nurses and (b) GPs in the latest period for which figures are available.

George Freeman: The GP Worklife Survey collects data from over 1,000 general practitioners (GPs) on the proportion of time spent on different activities. The latest data is from 2012 and suggests that GPs spend 62.3% of their time on direct patient care and 19.3% on indirect patient care. 10.9% of their time was spent on administration and 7.5% on other activities.   Source: http://www.population-health.manchester.ac.uk/healtheconomics/research/reports/FinalReportofthe7thNationalGPWorklifeSurvey.pdf   This information is not available for nurses.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what changes were made to the recording and presentation of A&E attendance data in 2003-04.

Jane Ellison: In 2003-04, the collection of quarterly accident and emergency (A&E) attendance data by department type was extended to include walk-in-centres. In addition, in preparation for the introduction of the four hour standard, waiting times data in A&E was also collected from 2003-04 onwards. The four hour standard came into force in December 2004.   The presentation of A&E attendance data included total attendances, sub-categorised by first and follow up attendances, but not by department type.   The total time spent in A&E, was presented as total attendances and percentage of patients spending four hours or less in A&E for both type 1 A&E departments and all types of A&E department.   For emergency admissions via A&E, data continued to be published on total admissions via type 1 departments, and how many patients waited: - under two hours to admission; - between two to four hours to admission; and - over 4 hours to admission.

Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Answers of 2 December 2014 to Question HL2907 and 17 March 2015 to Question HL5319 and the Written Statement of 24 November 2010, Official Report, columns WS101-2, on Questions for Written Answer: Correction, how many incidents of hospitalisation due to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) have been reported to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA); what steps the HFEA takes to ensure that any suspected serious adverse reactions are reported to the licensing authority in accordance with the Human Medicines Regulations 2012; what steps the HFEA takes in cases of failure to report any such incidents to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency; and whether he is satisfied that the HFEA is doing enough to protect patients from OHSS.

Jane Ellison: The information the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) holds on number of incidents of hospitalisation due to ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), that have been reported to the Authority, is set out in the written answer provided to the then hon. Member for Heywood and Middleton on 24 June 2014, Official Report, columns 156-157W (UIN 201565).   The HFEA has advised that the responsibility for reporting adverse reactions in accordance with the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 rests with clinics and the treating clinician. Should the HFEA be made aware of information relevant to the regulatory functions of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, this information would be shared between the two organisations.   The Department is satisfied that the Authority is fulfilling its statutory duties as set out in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, as amended.

Brain: Tumours

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people were living with a brain tumour, including all intercranial tumours, on the last date for which figures are available.

Jane Ellison: The UK Cancer Prevalence Project from the National Cancer Intelligence Network and Macmillan Cancer Support will publish 20-year cancer prevalence data in summer 2015, including new statistics on brain tumour survivors. Previous data can be found at:   http://www.ncin.org.uk/view.aspx?rid=76   Note: The brain tumour statistic relates to International Classification of Diseases’ version 10 codes C70-C72.

Cystic Fibrosis

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the implications for the NHS of the paper by Stephenson et al, A contemporary survival analysis of individuals with cystic fibrosis, published in the European Respiratory Journal, Volume 45, March 2015; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the NHS is adequately resourced to cope with an increase in cystic fibrosis patients over the next 10 years.

Jane Ellison: Since 1 April NHS England has been responsible for securing high quality outcomes for patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) as part of its remit to deliver specialised services. The CF service specifications (one for adults and one for children) NHS England has published sets out what providers must have in place in offer high quality CF care and support equity of access to services for patients wherever they live. Both specifications can be viewed at the following link:   www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/spec-services/npc-crg/group-a/a01/.   NHS England’s CF Clinical Reference Group, which advises on the development of services for patents, keeps relevant published literature under review. Moreover, it is recognised that the number of adults living with CF is gradually increasing over time, because of improvements in diagnosis and treatment. The growth in numbers is taken into account by NHS England as part of its annual commissioning process and will be considered in the ongoing development of its five year specialised commissioning strategy.

Meningitis: Vaccination

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he first contacted GSK about the price of the meningitis B vaccine.

Jane Ellison: Negotiations for the supply of the meningococcal B vaccine, Bexsero commenced on 11 March 2015. Since then, there has been contact between GSK and the Department.

Meningitis

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children died of meningitis B in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Jane Ellison: The table below shows the confirmed number of deaths from meningitis and septicaemia caused by meningococcal B in children aged up to and including 14 years of age in England and Wales for the last five years for which figures are available (2009 to 2013) sourced from enhanced surveillance conducted by Public Health England. Age20092010201120122013Total3126261410

Patients: Safety

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of the abolition of the Patient Safety Agency and the transfer of its responsibility for the National Reporting and Learning System to NHS England on the number of patient safety alerts issued between June 2012 and December 2013.

George Freeman: Responsibility for issuing patient safety advice to the healthcare system in the form of patient safety alerts transferred from the National Patient Safety Agency to NHS England in June 2012. Between June 2012 – December 2013 one Patient Safety Alert (NHS/PSA/W/2013/001: ‘Placement devices for nasogastric tube insertion DO NOT replace initial position checks’) was issued on 5 December 2013. To date, all providers have reported this alert as either ‘complete’ or ‘action not required’.   During the period in question NHS England maintained a constant review of patient safety incidents reported to the National Reporting and Learning System involving death and severe harm and, had an urgent patient safety issue needing alerting been identified, an alert would have been issued.

NHS: Standards

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which NHS operational standards have not been met during the period from May 2010.

Jane Ellison: Information on performance against National Health Service operational standards including waiting times for accident and emergency attendances, cancer, diagnostics and consultant–led treatment and ambulance response times for urgent calls is published by NHS England on its website at:   http://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/   Prior to April 2011, information on ambulance response times for urgent calls was published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre and is available on its website at:   http://www.hscic.gov.uk/article/2021/WebsiteSearch?q=ambulance+response+times&go=Go&area=both

Medical Records: Databases

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, by what date he plans to start patient communications in care.data pathfinder areas on the implications for patients of that programme to begin.

George Freeman: No patient communications will occur until the independent expert Dame Fiona Caldicott, as National Data Guardian, has reviewed them and provided advice.

Paediatrics

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve diagnosis and treatment times in paediatric services.

Norman Lamb: We have pledged to improve health outcomes for children and young people, and there is a wide range of activity to improve the responsiveness of the National Health Service. NHS England advises this includes the establishment of a United Kingdom based proton beam therapy service, improvements in access to psychological therapies for children and young people and a redesign of genetic testing services that will build upon the 100,000 genome project and enable faster access to test results.   We have invested £3 million in MindEd, which provides clear guidance on children and young people's mental health, so that people working with children can recognise when a child needs help and make sure they get it at an early stage.   We have also given £2 million for the development by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health of Paediatric Care online, a resource for the clinical workforce across the full range of children’s health issues, which promises to have a far-reaching impact on ensuring the effectiveness and consistency of paediatric care. This will be launched later in 2015.   Following an in-depth look at mental health and wellbeing support for children and young people, the Government has set out a blue-print for improving care over the next five years. The Government report of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Well-Being Taskforce’s findings, Future in mind, published on 17 March 2015, sets out a clear national ambition in the form of key aspirations that the Government would wish to see by 2020.   As part of the Autumn Statement 2014, it was announced the Government will invest £150 million over the next five years in England to improve services for children and young people with mental health problems. We will place particular emphasis on eating disorders. We will make sure that children and young people with an eating disorder get specialist help when they need it and in the community.   The Deputy Prime Minister announced on 14 March that £1.25 billion additional funding would be available over the next five years to fund improved access for children and young people with mental health problems - at least 100,000 more children and young people will receive treatment by 2020 and the funding will pay for the introduction of new access and waiting time standards.

Meningitis: Vaccination

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he expects negotiations on the meningitis B vaccine to be concluded before 30 March 2015.

Jane Ellison: We are seeking to conclude negotiations with the manufacturer of the meningococcal B vaccine, Bexsero for its supply, at a cost-effective price, as soon as possible.

Kidney Cancer: Drugs

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the Cancer Drugs Fund's policy is on funding Sunitib for the treatment of kidney cancer; and what the reasons are for any exclusions in the Cancer Drugs Fund's policy towards treatment of this form of cancer.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended sunitinib (Sutent) for the first-line treatment of advanced and/or metastatic renal cell carcinoma subject to certain criteria. NICE does not recommend sunitinib for the second-line treatment of this condition.   Sunitinib for the treatment of kidney cancer is not included on the national list of drugs provided routinely through the Cancer Drugs Fund and clinicians are able to apply for individual patients to receive the drug on an exceptional basis.

Hospital Beds: East Midlands

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many hospital beds in each sector or service there have been in (a) Sherwood Forest Hospitals and (b) Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trusts in each year since 2008.

Jane Ellison: Data on beds open overnight or day only is routinely collected and data since 2000-01 is published online at:   http://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/bed-availability-and-occupancy/

Health Services

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department issues to NHS England on sharing accountability for prescribed specialised services with clinical commissioning groups.

Jane Ellison: The Department does not issue guidance to NHS England on sharing accountability for prescribed specialised services with clinical commissioning groups.   It is for Ministers to take the final decision as to which services should be prescribed within Schedule 4 of The National Health Service Commissioning Board and Clinical Commissioning Groups (Responsibilities and Standing Rules) Regulations 2012, and therefore which services are directly commissioned by NHS England. It is for NHS England to determine the approach through which to carry out its responsibility for the commissioning of specialised services.

General Practitioners: Ashfield

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many trained GPs were employed in the primary care trust serving Ashfield constituency in each year since 2008.

George Freeman: The number of general practitioners, excluding registrars, in the former Nottinghamshire County Teaching Primary Care Trust (PCT) and in each of the clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) that succeeded the PCT, in each year since 2008 can be found in the table below:200820092010 (1)2011(1)2012(1)2013(1)HeadcountNottinghamshire County Teaching PCT418434415436427.NHS Mansfield And Ashfield CCG.....106NHS Newark and Sherwood CCG.....73NHS Nottingham North And East CCG.....97NHS Nottingham West CCG.....66NHS Rushcliffe CCG.....79Total of above CCGs.....420  200820092010201120122013Full Time EquivalentNottinghamshire County Teaching PCT365372361365367.NHS Mansfield And Ashfield CCG.....99NHS Newark and Sherwood CCG.....64NHS Nottingham North And East CCG.....83NHS Nottingham West CCG.....54NHS Rushcliffe CCG.....70Total of above CCGs.....370 Source: The Health and Social Care Information Centre General and Personal Medical Services Statistics Notes:   The data provided is as at 30 September each year.   '.' denotes not applicable.   Figures are shown for those NHS organisations that were in operation at the time of the respective Census. NHS workforce statistics are not available by parliamentary constituency.   Between 2008 and 2012 Ashfield constituency was contained within and serviced by Nottinghamshire County PCT. From 2013 onwards Ashfield constituency has been within NHS Mansfield and Ashfield CCG. The four other CCGs which emerged from Nottinghamshire County PCT have been included in the data also to provide comparability with previous years.   (1) Headcount Methodology: The new headcount methodology from 2010 onwards means this data is not fully comparable with previous years, due to improvements that make it a more stringent count of absolute staff numbers. Further information on the headcount methodology is available in the Census publication. The latest (2010 onwards) headcount methodology counts each person once only in each aggregated total; for example if a GP worked in both Mansfield and Ashfield CCG and in Rushcliffe CCG he would get counted once in each CCG but only once in the higher level Derby and Nottinghamshire Area Team.

Medical Equipment

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress NHS England has made in its review of regulations relating to dispensing appliance contractor licences.

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what consideration NHS England will give to small and medium-sized enterprises in its review of regulations relating to dispensing appliance contractor licences.

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what consideration NHS England will give to patient choice in its review of regulations relating to dispensing appliance contractor licences.

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what part consultation and stakeholder engagement will play in NHS England's review of regulations relating to dispensing appliance contractor licences.

George Freeman: NHS England currently has no plans to ask the Department to consider making any changes in respect of those provisions of the National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013, as amended, that relate to dispensing appliance contractors. If NHS England were to undertake a review of the regulatory arrangements concerning dispensing appliance contractors, it would take account of a range of factors including the views of patients, consumers and business.

Strokes

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of implementing the NHS Improving Quality Programme recommendation of the use of Intermittent Pneumatic Compression devices in stroke units to prevent potentially fatal blood clots in patients who have suffered stroke.

Jane Ellison: NHS Improving Quality estimates the cost to the National Health Service of treating stroke patients who would benefit with intermittent pneumatic compression would be around £2.5 million per annum. This cost will be offset by the reduction in use of stockings and medication which have been shown to be ineffective in preventing deep vein thrombosis in stroke patients.

Visual Impairment

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many finished consultant episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of (a) age-related macular degeneration, (b) glaucoma, (c) diabetic retinopathy and (d) cataracts there were in the NHS in England in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: The following table provided by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) shows the number of finished consultant episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of (a) age-related macular degeneration, (b) glaucoma, (c) diabetic retinopathy and (d) cataracts in the National Health Service in England between 2009/10 and 2013/14.   YearAge-related Macular DegenerationGlaucomaDiabetic RetinopathyCataracts2009-10100,45595,40063,143381,0712010-11128,439123,96277,704390,5712011-12138,202133,06178,419389,1812012-13149,635139,38580,615395,8822013-14152,583156,11593,058437,038 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, HSCIC   This data includes patients who were treated as inpatients or day cases (admitted patient care) but not patients who were treated as an outpatient.   It should be noted that the data shown above is not a count of people, as the same person may have had an episode of care on more than one occasion within the same year.

Visual Impairment

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the rate was of (a) age-related macular degeneration, (b) glaucoma and (c) diabetic retinopathy per 100,000 population by age group in (i) 2013-14 and (ii) 2014-15 to date.

Jane Ellison: Data is not collected showing the rate of age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy per 100,000 population, by age group.   The following table provided by the Health and Social Care Information Centre shows the rate of Finished Admission Episodes with a primary diagnosis of (a) age-related macular degeneration, (b) glaucoma and (c) diabetic retinopathy per 100,000 of population, by age group in England for 2013-14 and provisional data for April 2014-November 2014.2013-14 Rate per 100,000 populationApril 2014-November 14 (provisional) Rate per 100,000 populationAge GroupAge related Macular DegenerationGlaucomaDiabetic RetinopathyAge related Macular DegenerationGlaucomaDiabetic Retinopathy0-40.111.00.00.07.60.05-90.13.70.00.22.70.010-140.33.00.10.12.20.015-190.32.80.40.21.40.720-241.03.34.80.42.43.425-291.33.910.31.02.77.130-341.55.613.20.93.910.235-392.99.314.81.55.111.240-445.914.620.82.27.815.945-499.622.030.46.414.923.350-5417.431.645.110.720.834.255-5938.646.758.527.831.946.560-6495.972.369.964.247.555.265-69219.9101.272.5154.069.660.570-74466.5147.977.0331.3100.665.975-79830.2189.272.5596.0127.664.480-841,362.5203.757.9942.9138.752.585-891,809.6183.834.01,281.0119.535.490 and over1,623.6109.511.51,239.869.313.5 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre   The data includes patients who were treated as inpatients or day cases (admitted patient care) but not patients who were treated as outpatients or in primary care. The rate of these diseases is likely to be much higher as some cases would not require a hospital admission.   It should be noted that this is not a count of people as the same person may have had an episode of care on more than one occasion within the same year.

Osteoporosis

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many finished hospital admission episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of fractures attributable to osteoporosis there were amongst (a) women under, (b) women over, (c) men under and (d) men over the age of 50 in 2013-14.

Norman Lamb: The following table provides a count of finished admission episodes where there was a primary or secondary diagnosis of fractures attributable to osteoporosis amongst men, women and genders not specified for the age groups requested for the period 2013-14.   WomenMenUnknown genderAged under 50Aged above 50Unknown ageAged under 50Aged above 50Unknown ageAged under 50Aged above 50Unknown age25211,142152373,2328-3-   Notes:   1. A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year.   2. The number of episodes where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.   Source: Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Eyesight: Testing

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many free sight tests were provided on the NHS to people aged (a) under and (b) over 60 in England in each of the last five years.

George Freeman: The table below shows how many National Health Service funded sight tests were provided in England to people aged over 60 and to other eligible groups in each of the last five years.2009/102010/112011/122012/132013/14Aged 60 and over5,191,7735,305,1775,537,9305,480,7115,562,847Other eligible groups6,619,8786,633,3526,767,7976,858,5427,224,583Total11,811,65111,938,52912,305,72712,339,25312,787,430   Source: Health and Social Care Information Centre   Free sight tests on the NHS are available to certain eligible groups including people aged 60 and over, children under 16, those aged 16-18 in full-time education, people on low incomes and defined categories of people at particular risk of developing eye disease.   Some individuals may qualify for an NHS sight test on more than one criterion. However, they would only be recorded against one criterion on the NHS sight test form. Patients are more likely to be recorded according to their clinical need rather than their age. For example, a patient aged over 60, with glaucoma is likely to be recorded in the glaucoma category only. The count for those aged 60 and over is therefore an approximate figure and may slightly underestimate.

Cancer

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the efficacy of using BRCA gene testing techniques to diagnose certain types of cancers.

Jane Ellison: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) clinical guideline on familial breast cancer, published in June 2013, recommends that women with breast or ovarian cancer should be offered genetic testing if their combined BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carrier possibility is 10% or more.   NICE clinical guidelines represent best practice and we expect National Health Service organisations in England to take them fully into account in designing services to meet the needs of their local populations.

Babies: Heart Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many babies were born with a hole in their heart in each of the last five years.

George Freeman: Information on the number of babies born with a hole in their heart is not collected centrally.   The following table provides information on the number of finished birth episodes where there was a primary or secondary diagnosis of a cardiac septal defect (where there is a hole between two of the heart's chambers) for the years 2009-10 to 2013-14. The table does not include babies where the condition was diagnosed after the birth episode.Count of finished consultant (birth) episodes (FCEs)1 with a primary or secondary diagnosis2 of cardiac septal defects3, 2009-10 to 2013-144   Activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector   YearBirth Episodes   2009-101,615   2010-111,888   2011-122,069   2012-132,217   2013-142,370  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre   Notes: 1FCE A FCE is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. There is one FCE record per baby born in each delivery episode.   2Number of episodes in which the patient had a primary or secondary diagnosis The number of episodes where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a HES record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.   3ICD-10 Codes The term ‘hole in the heart’ does not exist in the ICD-10 classification. Instead, we have used the following ICD-10 coding:   Q21.- Congenital malformations of cardiac septa.   4Assessing growth through time (Admitted patient care) HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer included in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information.   HES include activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013.

Cancer: Smoking

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his comparative estimate is of the number of deaths due to cancer for which the primary cause was smoking in (a) 2004 and (b) 2014.

Jane Ellison: Time series data showing the estimated number of deaths for adults aged 35 and over that can be attributed to smoking from 2001 to 2013 inclusive is provided in the Health and Social Care Information Centre 2014 Supplementary information files which is available at:   http://www.hscic.gov.uk/article/5317/2014-Supplementary-information-files   2014 mortality data has not yet been published. These data will be released with the forthcoming Statistics on Smoking, England - 2015 publication.   A table providing data from 2003, 2004 and 2013 is attached. 



Smoking deaths- adults 35 & over 2003, 2004 & 2013
(Excel SpreadSheet, 25.85 KB)

NHS: Liability

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the liabilities faced by the NHS from unprocessed care home claims.

Norman Lamb: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not made any assessment of the liabilities faced by the National Health Service from unprocessed care home claims.   However, on 15 March 2012, the Department announced deadlines for any new cases to the system which require assessment for NHS Continuing Healthcare (NHS CHC) funding, for previously unassessed periods of care, where there is evidence that the individual may have been eligible for NHS CHC. As a result of this, approximately 59,000 enquiries were received by the NHS. NHS England has made an assessment of the liability of these cases.

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Mr John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the Government will refund penalty charges for people who subsequently were given a medical exemption certificate.

George Freeman: It is important that those who should pay prescription charges do so. However we recognise that some people with an underlying medical entitlement to exemption are not clear about the requirement to hold a valid exemption certificate. We have therefore introduced a new process whereby if someone has made a claim for medical (or maternity) exemption, and there is no evidence they hold an exemption certificate, they will still receive a penalty charge, but this can be cancelled if they submit a valid application for a medical (or maternity) exemption certificate within 60 days of the receipt of the penalty charge notice.

Urgent and Emergency Care Review

Mr Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when his Department plans to publish the remaining stages of the Keogh Urgent and Emergency Care Review.

Jane Ellison: On 17 December 2014, the ‘Urgent and Emergency Care Review: Progress and Implementation Plan’ was presented at NHS England’s public board meeting. It set out progress and detailed the outstanding pieces of work which will deliver the objectives of the Review. The plan contains a timeline for each component of this work and is available on the NHS England website at:   http://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/item8-board-1214.pdf

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Fire Prevention: Furniture

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills of 25 November 2014, Official Report, column 257WH, what progress he has made on reviewing proposals to amend the Furniture and Furnishing (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988.

Jo Swinson: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has been carefully analysing the responses to the consultation on the proposed amendments to certain test schedules in the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. The Government response to this consultation was published on 25 March 2015 and can be accessed at www.gov.uk/government/consultations/furniture-fire-safety-regulations-proposed-amendments.

Trade Promotion

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the (a) total cost and (b) cost per area of expenditure was of the GREAT campaign launch in Los Angeles in February 2015; and who the attendees were at that launch.

Matthew Hancock: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



The reception cost £85,000 with 35% funded by the private sector. Approx. £37,000 was spent on venue hire, food and drink, £48,000 on event management, logistics and security.   Approximately 500 guests from the creative sector including major studios and film production companies, sponsors, c-suite representative of British businesses with a presence in California as well as potential US investors in the UK, elected officials and media figures as well as more than 30 British Oscar nominees

Postgraduate Education

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to paragraph 1.179 of Budget 2015, what estimate he has made of how many PhD and post-graduate students in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) England, (d) Wales and (e) Northern Ireland will receive the proposed financial support in each of the next five years.

Greg Clark: We are consulting on how best to implement the policy as part of a wider review into how to broaden and strengthen support for postgraduate researchers. We will be working with employers, universities and students to make sure the scheme meets the most pressing needs.   The Higher Education Statistics Agency collects and publishes data on student entrants, enrolments and qualifiers at UK Higher Education Institutions.

Infrastructure

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to paragraph 1.185 of Budget 2015, which bodies he expects to provide co-funding for the Collaboratorium for Research in Infrastructure and Cities; and what steps he is taking to encourage such co-funding.

Greg Clark: The Collaboratorium for Research in Infrastructure and Cities consortium is identifying potential industrial and institutional co-investors as part of the business case development for this initiative. Government is ready to support leveraged funding where appropriate.

New Businesses: Government Assistance

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many start-up businesses have been created in (a) England, (b) London and (c) Hendon constituency since 2010.

Matthew Hancock: The estimated number of new business start-ups in a) England, b) London and c) Hendon constituency since January 2010, is shown in the table below: AreaEstimated number of new business start-ups from January 2010 to February 2015England2,166,020London543,560Hendon9,410Source: BankSearch: number of new business bank accounts opened. All figures rounded to the nearest 10.

Textiles: Labelling

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to ensure market compliance with EU Regulation 1007/2011 on textile labelling in regard to (a) the new requirement for textile products containing non-textile parts of animal origin to be clearly labelled as such and (b) other provisions in the regulation.

Jo Swinson: It is important that consumers have accurate information to enable them to make informed choices when they are buying textile products that contain non-textile parts of animal origin. The 2012 regulations on textile labelling replaced three separate Directives and simplified and improved a complex framework which was difficult to enforce and confusing for business. Responsibility for enforcement lies with local authority trading standards officers in Great Britain and the Department of Enterprise and Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland. Any evidence of possible offences should be brought to their attention.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the average hourly pay is of employees in his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Jo Swinson: In the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the average hourly rate of pay for White or White British employees is £23.53. For BIS employees that are Black, Asian or other minority ethnic groups (including mixed race), the hourly rate is £20.07. Please note that the above figures reflect the different levels of seniority of the employees that have provided their ethnicity information. This information is declared on a voluntary basis.

Israel

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to the oral evidence taken by the Committees on Arms Export Controls on 1 December 2014, HC 608, when the report of the review of extant exporting licensing and the licensing of new applications for Israel will be published.

Matthew Hancock: This review has not yet been concluded. The outcomes of the review will be announced publically in due course.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which reports commissioned by his Department from external bodies between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 have not yet been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research so commissioned was; from which individual or body each such report was commissioned; what the value was of each report so commissioned; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Matthew Hancock: This information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Adult Education: South East

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the budget for the funding of adult skills in (a) the South East and (b) Eastbourne constituency is for (i) 2014-15 and (ii) 2015-16.

Nick Boles: The Skills Funding Agency does not allocate funding to specific geographical areas. The Agency allocates funding to colleges and training providers, some of whom operate on very local geographic footprints, whilst others provide training and skills services to learners and employers across the country. Colleges have all now received their allocations for 2015/16 and they will be in the public domain during June 2015. Allocations for all providers in 2014/15, including those in the South East and Eastbourne areas, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sfa-funding-allocations-to-training-providers-2014-to-2015.

Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233, how the increased resources for the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate in this financial year have been allocated.

Jo Swinson: All of the increased resources in the Employment Agency Standards (EAS) Inspectorate have been allocated to front line postsWe have recruited two additional EAS Inspectors and an Operations and Prosecutions Manager, all of whom carry warrant cards and carry out both complaint investigation and targeted enforcement operations in high risk areas.

Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233, what additional staffing the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate has allocated to conduct targeted enforcement action in high risk areas.

Jo Swinson: The resources in Employment Agency Standards (EAS) have doubled this year and will increase again in the next financial year.All of the staff in the EAS Inspectorate carry out both complaint investigation and targeted enforcement operations in high risk areas.

Employment Agencies: Inspections

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233, which potential breaches of the (a) Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 and (b) Employment Agencies Act 1973 were identified in the inspections of employment businesses conducted by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate in February 2015.

Jo Swinson: Across the agencies visited in Sheffield in February, the following potential breaches of the Conduct Regulations were found: Regulation 5 – Cannot make the provision of work-finding conditionally upon buying goods or services supplied by the agency Regulation 10 – Transfer fees for a temporary worker moving to a permanent position with a hirer or third party Regulation 13 – Information to be given in writing about goods or services provided by the agency Regulation 14 – Terms to be agreed with a work-seeker Regulation 15 – Specific information to be contained in the terms agreed under Regulation 14 Regulation 17 – Terms to be agreed with the hirer Regulation 18 – Information to be obtained from the hirer in relation to the work to be undertaken Regulation 19 – Confirmation to be obtained about a work seeker Regulation 21 – Confirmation of information to be passed to both the work-seeker and hirer about each other Regulation 24 – Covers where a work seeker is required to travel and/or live away from home to undertake an assignment, and loans Regulation 28 – Confidentiality and use of the information provided to the agency by the work-seeker Regulation 29 – Maintenance of records to show compliance with these Regulations Regulation 32 – Changes that need to be made to terms to reflect the fact that the work-seeker is incorporated   There was also one potential instance of charging for work finding services which is a breach of Section 6 (1) of the Employment Agencies Act 1973.

Employment Agencies: Inspections

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233, what the most common breaches of obligations under the (a) Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 and (b) Employment Agencies Act 1973 identified by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate are.

Jo Swinson: The most common breaches of the obligations under the Conduct Regulations are: Regulation 12 - Withholding payment for work undertakenRegulation 13 – Information to be given in writing about goods or services provided by the agencyRegulation 14 – Terms to be agreed with a work-seekerRegulation 15 – Specific information to be contained in the terms agreed under Regulation 14 The most common breach of the obligations under the Employment Agencies Act is charging for work finding services which is a breach of Section 6 (1) of the Employment Agencies Act 1973.

Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233 and the Written Statement of 4 November 2013, Official Report, 1WS, if he will ensure that staff seconded from the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS) to HM Revenue and Customs will be returned to EAS.

Jo Swinson: The resources in EAS have doubled this year and will increase again in the next financial year. Since November 2014, three staff who were on loan to HMRC have returned to EAS. We are currently undertaking a recruitment exercise to further increase EAS resources and the remaining EAS staff on loan may apply to return if they choose.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he plans to provide a substantive answer to Questions 225677, 225678, 225008 and 225009.

Greg Clark: I have replied to the hon Member.

EU Law

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent discussions he has had on the EU Accounting and Transparency Directives; and what steps he is taking to ensure compliance with those Directives.

Jo Swinson: Since making the Reports on Payments to Government Regulations and the introduction of the Financial Conduct Authority rules in December 2014 the government has continued to have discussions with all stakeholders. The most recent meeting between the department, civil society and industry representatives was held in February 2015. I have since spoken to representatives from the Publish What You Pay coalition.   The Government takes extractive transparency very seriously. To support compliance the department has made information available on the gov.uk website. This includes a schema for delivering reports and step by step guidance on how to fill in the report format, both agreed with industry and civil society.   The Government expects companies to comply with the requirements of the Regulations, which set out the enforcement and penalty regime for any company that fails to comply in part or in full.   Reports will be published on the Companies House website in 2016, when all interested parties will be able to consider the reports and their accuracy.

Arts: Pay

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to paragraph 5.27 of the Low Pay Commission Report 2015, if he will take steps alongside stakeholders in the entertainment industry to produce and publish national minimum wage guidance for that sector.

Jo Swinson: We are committed to improving compliance with the National Minimum Wage. We do not currently have plans to publish guidance for individual sectors; however we will carefully consider the Low Pay Commissions (LPC) recommendations.   We continue to work with the LPC and HMRC to ensure we provide clear and comprehensive information on the minimum wage rules, particularly in those sectors with complex ways of working. We will work with our stakeholders, including the entertainment industry, to make further improvements to the clarity of National Minimum Wage guidance and consider whether sector-specific guidance is necessary.   To date, we have improved the clarity of the National Minimum Wage regulations by consolidating the numerous amendments made since 1999 and making it easier for employers to understand the rules. These will come into force on 6 April.   We have listened to stakeholders and have recognised that employers and workers also value official guidance. We have published detailed guidance on calculating the National Minimum Wage which is available on Gov.uk. This guidance aims to equip employers with the information they need to ensure they pay their workers the statutory minimum. We have also improved the information available on gov.uk on the National Minimum Wage rules, including: · The current and future National Minimum Wage rates · The Worker checklist · Work experience and internships · The increased penalty for breaching National Minimum Wage · The revised Criteria for Naming and shaming employers who breach National Minimum Wage legislation. Employers and workers can access further guidance by contacting the Acas Helpline online at: www.acas.org.uk/helplineonline or by phone on 0300 123 1100.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will ensure that a substantive Answer to Questions 227859 and 227860 is provided before prorogation.

Nick Boles: I have replied to the hon Member.

Public Houses

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to support pubs.

Jo Swinson: This Government is committed to supporting a fair and flourishing pubs sector. We have scrapped the beer duty escalator, and in Budget 2015 we cut beer duty for the third year in a row.   Through the Community Right to Bid, we are giving community organisations in England a better chance to save their local pub by listing it as an Asset of Community Value (ACV). And, from 6 April, we will strengthen the hands of communities whose pub is listed as an ACV still further by removing permitted development rights from those pubs.   Through the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill, we are introducing a Statutory Code of Practice and an independent Adjudicator to govern the relationship between large pub-owning companies and the thousands of tenants that run tied pubs across England and Wales. These measures will help to ensure the pubs industry continues to flourish, to the benefit of all those who work so hard to make the pub the mainstay of our communities.

Bradford College

Mr David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether there has been a reduction in Bradford College's budget for Level 2 and Level 3 courses.

Mr David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if his Department will take steps to ensure that courses are not cut at Bradford College owing to reductions in its budget.

Nick Boles: Adult Skills Budget allocations are given to colleges, which then have the freedom and flexibilities to decide what provision to offer according to local demand from employers and learners. It would be for Bradford College to determine what courses to offer and at what level.   Bradford College’s Total Adult Skills Budget for 2015-16 will be £ 9,481,925. In 2014-15 it was £10,225,903.

Higher Education: Israel

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the number of higher education institutes that participated in Israel Apartheid Week.

Greg Clark: This information is not held centrally. Higher education institutions are independent and autonomous bodies and as part of their legal duties are responsible for ensuring that students do not face racism or harassment.

Business: Cybercrime

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many organisations have been accredited to (a) Cyber Essentials and (b) Cyber Essentials Plus; and how many insurance companies reference Cyber Essentials accreditation.

Mr Edward Vaizey: As at the end of February 2015, 333 organisations had achieved Cyber Essentials accreditation and 72 had achieved Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation – a total of 405.   The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not currently hold information on how many insurance companies reference Cyber Essentials accreditation. However, Cyber insurance is a rapidly developing area with government and the insurance sector publishing a joint report on tackling cyber risks on 23 March 2015. A key component of that report is an agreement that participating insurers will include Cyber Essentials accreditation as part of their risk assessment for small and medium businesses.   Press Notice: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cyber-security-insurance-new-steps-to-make-uk-world-centre Report: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-cyber-security-the-role-of-insurance   Previous statement on insurance from Nov 2014: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cyber-security-is-essential-in-todays-marketplace

Cybercrime: Insurance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness among small and medium-sized businesses of insurance against cyber-attacks.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The recently published government guidance on cyber security for small businesses encourages companies to consider insurance as part of their approach to managing cyber risk. Cyber insurance is a rapidly developing area with government and the insurance sector publishing a joint report on tackling cyber risks on 23 March 2015. A key component of that report is an agreement that participating insurers will include Cyber Essentials accreditation as part of their risk assessment for small and medium businesses.   Cyber Security Guidance for Small Business: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/412017/BIS-15-147-small-businesses-cyber-guide-March-2015.pdf   Cyber Insurance Report: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-cyber-security-the-role-of-insurance

Internet: Copyright

Mr John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to Penalty Fair, the Intellectual Property Office study of criminal sanctions for copyright infringement available under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, what plans his Department has to strengthen the penalties for online copyright infringement.

Mr Edward Vaizey: This Government is committed to tackling intellectual property crime and is carefully considering the findings and recommendations of ‘Penalty Fair’, the independent review on criminal sanctions for copyright infringement. Appropriate next steps may include a public consultation, as recommended in the review, giving rights holders, members of the public and all copyright and internet interest groups the opportunity to provide their views. The implementation of any change would need careful consideration to understand its potential impact.

Adult Education: Durham

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what funding his Department has allocated for adult skills training in east Durham in 2015-16; and what amount was allocated for that purpose in 2014-15.

Nick Boles: The Skills Funding Agency does not allocate funding to specific geographical areas. The Agency allocates funding to colleges and training providers, some of whom provide training and skills services to learners and employers across the country. Adult Skills Budget Allocations have just been communicated to colleges and the total Budget for East Durham College in 2015/16 is £2,749,202. In 2014/15 it was £3,693,588.

Mobile Phones: Weather

Mr Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions he has had with mobile phone operators on the effects of adverse weather on their systems; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I have had no specific discussions with mobile phone operators on the issue of adverse weather, but there is a regular dialogue on issues of concern to both industry and Government.   The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills works closely with the telecoms industry, in particular via the pan industry and government Electronic Communications – Resilience & Response Group (EC-RRG) which leads on enhancing resilience levels and the preparation and exercising of incident response.

UK Membership of EU

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent assessment he has made of the contribution of EU membership to business and the economy in the UK.

Vince Cable: The European Single Market gives British firms access to 500 million consumers and, as our largest trading partner, is responsible for almost half of this country’s exports. A wide range of economic studies demonstrate the benefits to the UK economy from EU membership.

Small Businesses: Billing

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to tackle late payment to small businesses.

Matthew Hancock: We have taken unprecedented step to bring transparency to late payment, and I can tell the House I have written to all signatories to the Prompt Payment Code to set out the new requirements of a 30 day payment term as the norm, with a 60 day maximum. And we have legislated to require 30 day payment terms to be mandated down entire supply chains for public sector work.

Regional Planning and Development

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to promote regional growth.

Greg Clark: Since this Government was elected 1.9 million more people are in employment, with jobs created in every region of the country – 60% outside London and the South East.   The 28 City Deals, and 39 Local Growth Deals are helping drive local growth by transferring powers and resources from Whitehall to local economies.

Ministry of Defence

Members: Correspondence

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when his Department plans to reply to the letter of 5 August 2014 from the hon. Member for York Outer to the Minister of State for the Armed Forces, about the relocation of 15 North East Brigade from Imphal Barracks.

Mr Mark Francois: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 09 December 2014.The correct answer should have been:

I will reply to the hon. Member before the House rises for the Christmas recess.

Anna Soubry: I will reply to the hon. Member before the House rises for the Christmas recess.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Typhoon, (b) Tornado GR4/4A, (c) F-35B, (d) Sentry AEW1, (e) Sentinel R1 ASTOR, (f) Shadow R.1, (g) Islander CC2/CC2A, (h) MQ-9 Predator B, (i) RC-135 Rivet Joint, (j) A330 FSTA, (k) Hercules, (l) C-17 Globemaster, (m) A400M, (n) HS125 CC3, (o) BAe 146 CC2, (p) Chinook HC4, (q) Chinook HC5, (r) Chinook HC6, (s) Merlin HC3, (t) Merlin HC3A ex RDAF, (u) Puma HC2/SA330 Puma, (v) Sea King HAR3/A, (w) A109 Power, (x) Griffin HC2, (y) S-61N, (z) AW189, (aa) Hawk T1/T1A, (bb) Hawk T2, (cc) Tucano T1, (dd) King Air, (ee) Griffin HT1 are in (i) the forward fleet, (ii) sustainment and (iii) storage.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Squirrel HT1/HT2, (b) T67M-2 Firefly, (c) Grob 115 Tutor, (d) Viking, (e) Vigilant, (f) AW139, (g) A109 Power, (h) Sea King HAS6, (i) Sea King HU5, (j) Merlin HM1, (k) Merlin MH2, (l) Sea King ASaC7, (m) Sea King HC4, (n) Sea King HC6CR, (o) Lynx HAS3, (p) Lynx HMA8, (q) Wildcat HMA2, (r) Hawk, (s) Grob 115 Heron, (t) Dauphin, (u) King Air, (v) Islander AL1, (w) Defender 4S AL2, (x) Defender T3, (y) Lynx AH7 and (z) Lynx AH9A are in (i) the forward fleet, (ii) sustainment and (iii) storage.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Apache AH1, (b) Gazelle AH1, (c) AS365N3 Dauphin, (d) Bell 212, (e) Lynx Wildcat, (f) Squirrel HT1/HT2 and (g) Watchkeeper 450 are in (i) the forward fleet, (ii) sustainment and (iii) storage.

Mr Julian Brazier: Holding answer received on 04 March 2015



The information requested is in the attached table. The Forward Fleet comprises aircraft which are serviceable and those which are short-term unserviceable. Short-term unserviceable aircraft are undergoing minor works, forward maintenance or any other unforeseen rectification or technical inspection work that can arise on a day-to-day basis. The Sustainment Fleet numbers represent those aircraft in our Depth Fleet, which comprises aircraft which are undergoing planned depth maintenance or upgrade programmes. The numbers recorded as being in “Storage” are airworthy aircraft that are currently in temporary storage. These figures exclude those which are redundant, declared as surplus or awaiting disposal. The following aircraft types are contractor owned and do not feature in the table. The contracts for these fleets are based on delivery of a specific number of flying hours and aircraft availability. The actual numbers of airframes and specific aircraft types used in the fulfilment of the contract are a matter for the contractor to decide, based on their commercial and technical judgement. · Squirrel HT1/HT2· S-61N· A109 Power and A109E Power· AW189 (selected by the future Falkland Islands Search & Rescue provider. It will be civil registered and operated by Industry).· Bell 212· Dauphin N2· Griffin HT1· Griffin HC2· Grob 115 Tutor· Grob 115 Heron is a sub-type of Grob Tutor. The AW139 and some of the A109 aircraft are operated on the military register in support of some commercial activities.   



Aircaft Platforms
(Word Document, 123.5 KB)

Nuclear Installations: Safety

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the protected nuclear safety baseline staff complement numbers are for each of the nuclear authorities within his Department; and how many personnel were in post authorisees as of 31 December 2014.

Mr Philip Dunne: Holding answer received on 12 March 2015



The following table summarises the number of nuclear organisational baseline posts for Authorisees within the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and the number of personnel (military, civilian or contractor) in these MOD posts as of 31 December 2014. MOD AuthoriseePostsPersonnel in postChief Strategic Systems Executive<10<10Strategic Weapons Project Team120120Her Majesty’s Naval Base Devonport120110Her Majesty’s Naval Base Clyde230220Nuclear Propulsion Project Team10090Naval Reactor Test Establishment Vulcan<10<10 Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in 5 are rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. A nuclear organisational baseline is a requirement of the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator. Some, but not all, baseline posts require Nuclear Suitably Qualified and Experienced Personnel (NSQEP), and not all NSQEP are employed in baseline posts. None of the vacancies are in posts categorised as safety critical. The vacancies have not impaired the MOD’s ability to deliver the Defence Nuclear Programme safely.

Armed Conflict: Children

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether all armed forces personnel are made aware of the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict during their training.

Anna Soubry: Holding answer received on 16 March 2015



This Convention and Protocol are amongst the body of International Law which underpins operational legal training and pre-deployment training. Such training is provided as necessary to Service personnel.  Additionally; Personnel are made aware of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict through a Joint Publication, namely (JDP) 1-05. This publication sets out the Ministry of Defence’s policy with regard to the deployment on operations of U18s in the Armed Forces.

Armed Forces: Redundancy

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the armed forces have been made redundant in (a) Preston, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013 and (v) 2014.

Anna Soubry: Holding answer received on 20 March 2015



The table below shows how many members of the Armed Forces have been made redundant in Preston, Lancashire and the North West in each calendar year between 2010 and 2014.LOCAL AUTHORITY AREAYEAR/NUMBER OF TRAINED UK REGULAR ARMED FORCES PERSONNEL WHO LEFT ON REDUNDANCY 20102011201220132014North West--9010040Lancashire--504030Preston--2020~“-“ zero“~” fewer than fiveWhere rounding has been used, totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not equal the sums of their rounded parts. When rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in “five” have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20.The figures are based on the stationed location of Service personnel and not their location of residence. Personnel deployed on operations to an area away from their stationed location are shown against their most recent stationed location.

Nuclear Weapons

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) value for money assessment and (b) technical appraisal he has made of (i) the Pegasus project for uranium enrichment and (ii) the Mensa Project on assembling and disassembling nuclear warheads at AWE Aldermaston; and if he will publish that assessment and that appraisal.

Mr Philip Dunne: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Warships

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what frontline Royal Navy ships are currently in refit.

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what Royal Navy ships are currently in extended readiness; and when those ships will be available for service.

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what Royal Navy ships are currently available for operational service.

Mr Philip Dunne: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



The normal operating cycle of every ship involves them entering different readiness levels depending on their programmes and Departmental planning requirements. It is Ministry of Defence policy not to publish details of the readiness states of individual Royal Navy vessels or types for reasons of national security. A list of ships available for operational service, in refit or at low or very low readiness as at 19 March 2015 is attached. 



228027 - RN Ships in Operational service; refit
(Word Document, 33 KB)

Assets

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made on the sale of the Government pipeline and storage systems.

Mr Philip Dunne: I am pleased to confirm that I announced the sale of the Government pipelines and storage system via a Written Ministerial Statement on 20 March 2015 (Official Report, column 86-87WS).



228038 - WMS Extract Pipeline and Storage System
(Word Document, 27.5 KB)

Syria

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contribution the UK plans to make to international efforts to train and equip Syrian moderate opposition forces.

Mr Mark Francois: As stated in the Written Ministerial Statement released to the House by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Michael Fallon) on 26 March 2015, the UK will be contributing trainers and headquarters staff to the Coalition efforts to train and equip the Syrian moderate opposition.

Military Decorations

Mr Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to introduce a post-nominal decoration for long service in the Reserve Forces.

Michael Fallon: I am pleased to announce that Reservists who complete 10 years service will be rewarded for their commitment with the introduction of a new post-nominal "Volunteer Reserve", to be indicated by the letters (VR). The post nominal will be for all members of the Reserves, regardless of rank or service, and will be backdated to 1999.In addition, subject to agreement from Her Majesty The Queen, the Ministry of Defence plans to introduce a new Long Service Medal for Regular personnel of all ranks which would be awarded after 15 years service.

Armed Forces: Official Residences

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 7 August 2014 to Question 205237, what the cost to the public purse was of running and maintaining each residence formerly referred to as an official service residence provided by his Department to senior figures from the armed forces in 2012-13.

Anna Soubry: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has separate pay scales for each grade. These consist of a minimum and maximum in between which are various spine points. An individual's position within each scale is dependent on an individual's career history. The treatment and calculation of pay is applied consistently for all members of staff. In addition to base salary, individuals can receive pay related allowances based upon the requirement of the post they are filling. The hourly rate is based upon the total remuneration package that individuals receive. Information on the average hourly pay of MOD civilian employees at each grade within his Department identified as White or White British and from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group is set out in the table below: Grade GroupingWhiteBAME (1)Choose Not to Declare (2)No Record (2)SCS & B1 (3)30.9733.3629.5536.61B224.0424.5424.0724.53C118.2818.5518.4718.20C214.7515.0315.1314.70D11.9212.2312.2711.75E19.529.859.579.30E28.348.998.338.05Skill Zone 18.478.468.508.42Skill Zone 29.369.519.349.20Skill Zone 310.6210.4210.599.44Skill Zone 412.7313.4512.5012.81DFS14.1712.9716.6213.27MOD Police17.9017.7218.5015.00NHS (4)19.9922.9325.3920.28Teachers (4)21.4321.7124.8021.10Retained Grades (5)17.1716.2023.1315.08Notes:1 Black, Asian, Minority, Ethnic.2 Ethnicity is a self declared characteristic on the civilian Human Resources Management System. As such, those personnel who have not declared at all and/or have chosen "not to declare" are reflected under the heading "Choose Not to Declare".3 The figures for grades Senior Civil Service (SCS) and B1 have been grouped because of the low numbers involved.4 The MOD employs a number of teachers in military schools and medical staff in MOD hospitals. Their grades and pay rates reflect the equivalents to their counterparts outside of the MOD.5 Retained grades are those who do not fit into broader banded categories (e.g. Flight Simulator Instructors, Salvage/Mooring Officers and Retired Officer grades).

Email

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there are official email addresses in his Department which do not accept emails from members of the public.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does have internal email addresses that do not accept emails from members of the public.

North West

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of how many jobs his Department (a) directly and (b) indirectly supports through its supply chain in (i) the North West, (ii) Lancashire and (iii) Preston.

Mr Philip Dunne: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Armed Forces: Trade Unions

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether armed forces personnel have the right to be represented by a trade union in relation to (a) changes to terms and conditions of employment and (b) collective complaints to their employer.

Anna Soubry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 March 2015 (Question 226717).



Hansard Extract 16 March 2015
(Word Document, 25 KB)

Polonium

Sir Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the UK ceased production of Polonium-210; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Armed Forces: Safety

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2015 to Question 227404, if he will place in the Library documents (a) DCDS(MilCap)/14/01/10, dated 28 January 2014 and (b) MAA/DG/COMMS/SENIOR MOD ZD743/ZD812 dated 13 December 2013.

Mr Philip Dunne: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Tornado Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2015 to Question 227978, and with reference to MAA RA1210, how the validity of the ALARP argument, at the time of the Tornado collision over the Moray Firth, will be legally decided.

Mr Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 March 2015 to Question 227978.http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=227978



227978 - Q n A extract on Tornado Aircraft
(Word Document, 25.5 KB)

Tornado Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place in the Library a copy of the document D/VCDS&2ndPUS/8/4 PR11 Tornado CWS Further Work identified in paragraph 1.4.6.606 of the Director General of the Military Aviation Report into the Tornado collision.

Mr Philip Dunne: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Underwater Test and Evaluation Centre

Mr Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether, in respect of the current proposals to revise the British Underwater Training and Evaluation Centre range at Kyle of Lochalsh, the new 82 square kilometre area is based upon the current take-up zone or will include the no travel zone; whether the revised Ministry of Defence area map is based on existing inner or outer limits; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The 82 square Km area is the existing byelawed area of the Raasay Ranges and includes the British Underwater Test and Evaluation Centre. This is divided into an Outer Area (around 56 square Km) in which no trawling or dredging is permitted, and an Inner Area (around 26 square Km) in which no fishing activity at all is permitted. The proposed byelaw extension is for a single range area (around 110 square Km) in which no fishing activity (including dredging or trawling) will be permitted, although this does include the possible creation of local agreements, that would permit controlled creel fishing or dive fishing in the area. In addition, the water-space around the island of Rona that is at present unavailable for fishing will also be released under the current proposals.

Underwater Test and Evaluation Centre

Mr Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if, in respect of the current proposals to revise the British Underwater Training and Evaluation Centre range at Kyle of Lochalsh, he will list the initial consultees involved prior to his letter of 3 November 2014 to the right hon. Member for Ross, Skye and Lochaber and others; what input was sought from Marine Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: On 19 August 2013 the Minister for Defence Equipment and Support (Philip Dunne) wrote to the right hon. Member to inform him that the Department was looking favourably on QinetiQ's proposals for new investment to sustain the operations of the Ministry of Defence Raasay Ranges. In addition, the Minister wrote to the then Deputy First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon and the constituency Member of the Scottish Parliament, David Thompson. In parallel officials wrote to the Highland Council and Highland and Islands Enterprise in order to seek their views on the proposal. Marine Scotland was not consulted at that stage, as the consultation focussed on new investment and implications for jobs at the site.The views of Marine Scotland were sought in late 2014 in relation to the planned installation of new cabling to support the proposed relocation of the in-water equipment at Raasay.

Syria

Mr Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2015 to Question 222433, on Syria, whether UK Reapers in Syria are conducting (a) pattern of life analyses, (b) collateral damage estimates and (c) battle damage assessments.

Mr Julian Brazier: While operating over Syria, UK Reapers conduct a range of surveillance tasks. No UK Reaper missions have been conducted in Syria other than for surveillance purposes.

RAF Croughton

Mr Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2015 to Question 226256, on RAF Croughton, what the dates were of the (a) Host Nation Notification and (b) Host Nation Response made in connection with the European Infrastructure Consolidated Review.

Anna Soubry: Following a period of consultation, Host Nation Notification in connection with the European Infrastructure Consolidated Review was received on 7 January 2015 and responded to on the same day.

Veterans: Military Decorations

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on the awarding of the Légion d'honneur to veterans of the Second World War.

Anna Soubry: We thank the French Government for making the offer to award the Legion d'Honneur to all those UK Servicemen who were involved in the liberation of France in 1944. So far the Ministry of Defence has passed in excess of 2,500 applications to the French Authorities.We continue to receive and process applications on a daily basis and this week we anticipate a further 200 applications will be passed across to the French Authorities.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Mr Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) Watchkeeper and (b) other unmanned aerial vehicles belonging to his Department were operated outside designated airspace in connection with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Mr Julian Brazier: No.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Public Bodies

Andrew Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much was spent by his Department's public bodies on employees partly or wholly employed on trade union duties in each of the last three years.

Kris Hopkins: This Government has taken action to tackle the taxpayer-funded subsidies that previously were handed to the trade unions. Such payments were poor value for money and represented an unhealthy relationship between the state and voluntary sector. Trade union activities and campaigning in the public sector should be funded by members' subscriptions, not bankrolled by the taxpayer. Greater freedom from state dependency will help ensure that trade union bosses better reflect and respond to the wishes and views of the grassroots members who pay the bill. Following the Cabinet Office review of the use of facility time and facilities in the civil service, the Department for Communities and Local Government has made a series of reforms:   Cutting back the guideline facility allocation to close to private sector benchmarks;All trade union representatives must now spend the majority of their time in Civil Service roles – we no longer fund full-time “pilgrims”;The Department no longer provides any funding for staff to carry out trade union activities;Tighter controls have been implemented to prevent inappropriate use of departmental and office facilities for campaigning purposes;The check-off facility has been ended for new entrants. In 2013-14, the first year of the new regime, departmental facility time staffing costs were reduced to £47,620. To place in context, previous years were £153,814 in 2012-13, £140,687 in 2011-12, £177,100 in 2009-10 and £245,644 in 2008-09. Figures for our public bodies are shown in the attached table, and show a total reduction of £222,303 in 2013-14 on the year before. There are additional further sayings from a reduction in union expenses (now zero across the Department and our public bodies). We have also issued guidance to councils to follow our example in delivering sensible savings. We have amended the local government Transparency Code to increase openness and accountability over such taxpayer-funded payments to the trade unions.



Table of Figures for Public Bodies
(Word Document, 22.23 KB)

Housing: Greater London

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of housing costs in London on the ability of employers to recruit staff; and if he will make a statement.

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to create more affordable housing in London.

Brandon Lewis: Decentralisation The Coalition Government decentralised housing, regeneration and economic development to the Mayor of London from April 2012. This enables him to shape programmes and direct funding to meet London’s needs. As part of the transfer of housing and regeneration functions we provided a capital grant of around £2.6 billion to the Greater London Authority up to 2014-15 to fund the housing and regeneration programmes inherited from the Homes and Communities Agency, the London Development Agency and for the development of the Olympic Park. Budget measures Our commitment to support London was set out in the recent Budget, where the Government set out the following proposals for London:   £1 million to allow the London Land Commission to create a comprehensive database of public sector and brownfield land.   £7 million to the Greater London Authority to support the development of the Croydon Growth Zone. This could unlock over 4,000 homes and 10,000 jobs.   £97 million of funding and a ring-fenced local 50% share of business rate growth to support the London Borough of Barnet and the Greater London Authority’s plans for the regeneration of Brent Cross. This will unlock approximately 7,500 homes of which at least 15% will be affordable.   Consult on giving greater powers over planning on sightlines and wharves to the Mayor of London, allowing the Mayor to accelerate provision of new homes by reducing planning delays. Affordable housing investment Government funding for new affordable housing in London is as follows: 2010-11: £1.1 billion (outturn), 2011-12: £712 million (outturn), 2012-13: £400 million (budget), 2013-14: £392 million (budget); 2014-15: £516 million (budget). However, this understates the total expenditure on new affordable housing in this Parliament. Across England, our affordable housing programme in 2011-15 is delivering £19.5 billion of public and private investment in affordable housing; about a quarter of which is being provided in London. This investment continues to contribute to the provision of new affordable homes for Londoners, of which 51,300 had already been delivered in London between April 2010 and the end of September 2014. A further £1.07 billion has been allocated from the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme, to deliver another 32,000 new affordable homes in London. In addition a further £180 million has been allocated from the Affordable Homes Guarantee Programme to deliver 8,700 homes. The Greater London Authority has so far announced initial grant allocations of £404 million to deliver 18,000 new homes and are now inviting further bids on a continuous market engagement basis. Again, the grant funding understates the total anticipated expenditure on affordable housing. We will deliver a total of 275,000 new affordable homes across England in 2015-20, with £38 billion of public and private investment. London’s allocation for 2018-20 has not been finalised. Building more rented accommodation The London Housing Bank is a new housing fund intended as a springboard to home ownership for aspirational working households on lower incomes. Through London Housing Bank, we are providing the Greater London Authority with £200 million of low-cost loan funding to deliver 3,000 – 4,000 new homes by March 2018. The Greater London Authority has already announced the first allocations of funding from the London Housing Bank, which will help deliver intermediate rental homes. These schemes include: Peabody Homes in Thamesmead; Isis part of the wider Hale Wharf regeneration site; and Quintain part of the continued regeneration of Wembley Park. Under our £1 billion Build to Rent fund we have contracted 4 schemes in London worth over £63 million and delivering 671 homes for private rent. Improving social housing We have awarded Decent Homes Backlog Funding of £821 million to 14 London Boroughs. This funding has so far made 42,110 homes decent. Gap funding granted to stock transfer landlords of £24 million has helped ensure that less than 0.9% of their stock failed the Decent Homes Standard at the end of March 2014. A further £145 million has been awarded to 9 London Boroughs to tackle their remaining Decent Homes Backlog. This will help to ensure that no more than 10% of stock in each local authority is non-decent by April 2016. We have also taken steps to protect leaseholders from excessive works charges imposed by local authorities. Reducing empty housing We have provided the Greater London Authority with £29 million to bring 1,600 empty homes back into use as affordable housing. Our full package of reforms to tackle empty housing is outlined in the written answer of 17 March 2015, Question 227326. London Boroughs have been allocated a total of £720 million of New Homes Bonus funding for 2011-2016, recognising over 140,000 additions to stock, and over 15,000 long-term empty properties returned to use. Almost 50,000 of these also received the premium for affordable homes. Supporting self-build and custom build In July 2012 we launched the Custom Build Homes Loan Fund and we delegated £5 million to the Greater London Authority to administer schemes in London. Bids exceeding this were submitted to the Greater London Authority and £4.8 million was allocated. We have exempted self-builders from Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 106 tariffs. Promoting home ownership schemes Since the start of the Help to Buy scheme in March 2012, over 5,300 families across London have brought a home using the support of a Government loan or guarantee, of which over 4,200 sales were to first-time buyers. This includes 2,430 under the Equity Loan sales scheme (of which 2,304 were to first-time buyers), 2,175 under the Mortgage Guarantee sales (of which 1,955 to first-time buyers) and 721 Newbuy sales (data is not available for the number of first-time buyers). We have reinvigorated the Right to Buy, with a proportion of the sales receipts being used to build new housing. This increases housing supply, moves people up the housing ladder and gets people off waiting lists. Supporting locally-led regeneration schemes We, with the Mayor, are investing each investing £200 million to create 20 new Housing Zones which will deliver 50,000 homes in London. The Mayor announced the first eleven Housing Zones in London in February 2015. We are working with the Greater London Authority and Transport for London to unlock 11,000 homes at Barking Riverside. We have invested around £125 million through Get Britain Building for twenty two schemes which has resulted in starts for 3,000 homes. The schemes include: Brentford Locks West – Get Britain Building funding enabled the first phase of this mixed use scheme by Isis Waterside Development to be delivered, bringing forward the first three blocks which deliver a total of 150 homes. Grahame Park, Brent – Get Britain Building funding unlocked a phase of this major regeneration scheme that had stalled. The first block of homes was completed in March 2014 with the final homes due to complete in March 2015. Lewisham Gateway - Get Britain Building funding will deliver 193 units and indirectly support the delivery of an additional 701 homes. We have shortlisted four housing estates in London for a share of a £150 million Government loan fund for Estate Regeneration. These schemes are in Grahame Park, in Barnet; Blackwall Reach and New Union Wharf, in Tower Hamlets and Aylesbury Estate, in Southwark. They would provide more than 8,000 new homes, of which more than 3,000 would be additional homes The Government announced in 2012 a UK Guarantee which would allow the Mayor of London to borrow £1 billion at a new preferential rate from the Public Works Loan Board to support the Northern Line Extension. We have aslo recently made regulations allowing the retention of 100% of business rates growth in the area from which to fund the borrowing. The extension is critical to the realisation of the £8 billion Battersea Power Station redevelopment, as well as the wider regeneration of the Vauxhall and Nine Elms area. Surplus Public Sector Land capable of delivering almost 28,000 homes has been sold in London. This was critical towards helping us achieve our wider ambition to dispose of land for 100,000 homes across England by the end of March 2015. We have supported a number of other regeneration projects in London. These include:   £141 million capital grant to the Greater London Authority for Olympicopolis – this project aims to develop a new education and cultural quarter on the Olympic Park.   £10 million capital funding for the London Enterprise Fund to support the regeneration of Croydon and Tottenham (2011-12).   Royal Albert Docks Enterprise Zone - we awarded a grant of £12 million from the ‘Building Foundations for Growth’ fund which is designed to accelerate progress on the zones to maximise long-term job creation. This supports the Mayor’s priority for growth in East London and building on past 30 years of regeneration in the wider area. Regeneration of the Royals will support the convergence of East London with the wider city area. Tackling homelessness and rough sleeping We have supported the Mayor in tackling homelessness in London through:   £34 million grant to tackle rough sleeping across London;   Developing a pioneering £5 million Social Impact Bond to improve the outcomes for a large group of persistent rough sleepers in London;   Providing £3.8 million from the Homelessness Transition Fund for the No Second Night Out scheme to help new rough sleepers off the street quickly in London; and   Allocating £2.8 million of Single Homelessness funding in 2011/12 to take forward a package of measures to prevent and tackle single homelessness, including rough sleeping. In addition we have provided £167 million Homelessness Prevention Grant to local authorities in London to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping. There is more to do, but I hope this illustrates the decision action taken by this Government to build more affordable homes and help people move on and up the housing ladder.

Fraud

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost of (a) fraud and (b) financial error in (i) his Department, (ii) its executive agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies in each of the last five years.

Kris Hopkins: My Department has recently delivered a new anti-fraud action plan, drafted a corporate anti-fraud strategy and updated anti-fraud guidance for staff.The attached table gives a list of identified incidents from 2009-10.



Table
(Word Document, 22.75 KB)

Community Relations

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Written Statement of 18 December 2014, HCWS154, on integration update, what funding he has provided for each of the projects and activities listed as previously funded.

Stephen Williams: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 15 January 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The attached tables give a breakdown of expenditure on the specific integration projects and activities which were included in the Written Ministerial Statement.


Expenditure on Integration Projects
(Word Document, 26.13 KB)




Integration project expenditure
(Word Document, 27.15 KB)

Stephen Williams: The attached tables give a breakdown of expenditure on the specific integration projects and activities which were included in the Written Ministerial Statement.


Expenditure on Integration Projects
(Word Document, 26.13 KB)




Integration project expenditure
(Word Document, 27.15 KB)

Community Relations

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Written Statement of 18 December 2014, HCWS154, on integration update, what funding he has provided to each of the projects and activities listed.

Stephen Williams: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 15 January 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The attached tables give a breakdown of expenditure on the specific integration projects and activities which were included in the Written Ministerial Statement.


Expenditure on Integration Projects
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Integration project spend
(Word Document, 27.15 KB)

Stephen Williams: The attached tables give a breakdown of expenditure on the specific integration projects and activities which were included in the Written Ministerial Statement.


Expenditure on Integration Projects
(Word Document, 26.13 KB)




Integration project spend
(Word Document, 27.15 KB)

Property Development

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many requests under the Community Right to Reclaim Land he has received.

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many disposal notices he has issued as a result of bids under the Community Right to Reclaim Land.

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many sites have been disposed of as a result of disposal notices issued by his Department under the Community Right to Reclaim Land.

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many pieces of land that have been disposed of under that Community Right to Reclaim Land were sold to the community groups that submitted the bid to his Department.

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many requests under the Community Right to Reclaim Land he has assessed from (a) individuals and (b) community groups.

Brandon Lewis: I have attached a table which outlines the actions we have taken in response to each substantive request under the Right to Reclaim since its introduction in 2011. Each case is considered on its individual merits. Even where a direction to dispose is not issued, the whole process of challenging the local authority can help fast-track their own disposal plans. We do not hold information on the status of the applicant. The act of Whitehall forcing councils to dispose of land is controversial, there is a high threshold for deciding whether a disposal can be ordered.. There is a strong commitment from the Government to making the best use of its land and disposing of land that is no longer needed. As such in addition to the Right to Reclaim Land powers which relate primarily to local government or other public bodies, a new Right to Contest was created in January 2014. This gives individuals, communities and businesses the ability to challenge Government on land and property owned by Whitehall departments and their agencies which is being used, but where, if sold, a better economic use could be made of it. Whilst theoretically people can still use the Community Right to Reclaim Land for Government land, in practice, most will now be dealt with under Right to Contest.  



Community Right to Recalim Land
(Excel SpreadSheet, 24.77 KB)

Housing: Derelict Land

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to bring forward housing development on brownfield land.

Brandon Lewis: We have introduced a package of measures designed to accelerate the development of brownfield land and deliver more homes. We expect local authorities to be proactive in bringing forward housing on brownfield land and to ensure they have local development orders in place, granting planning permission for new homes on over 90 per cent of brownfield land suitable for housing by 2020. This reflects the priority given to re-using brownfield in the National Planning Policy Framework. In particular: We have reformed the planning system to ensure that it supports the delivery of housing, including homes on brownfield land. The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that planning should encourage the effective use of land by re-using brownfield sites, provided they are not of high environmental value and that local councils can set locally appropriate targets for using brownfield land.We have amended planning practice guidance to stress the importance of bringing brownfield land back into useLocal authorities have been invited to bid for funding from a £4.4million incentive fund to support up to 100 local development orders.We are currently consulting on measures to underpin the Government’s programme.We are developing a support package, including local development order templates, to help authorities develop local development orders on smaller sites.Included powers in the Infrastructure Act which will enable the Mayor of London to produce Mayoral Development Orders that will remove planning obstacles to help deliver more housing in London.We are providing £400 million of recoverable investment funding to create Housing Zones to support development on brownfield land. 9 housing zones have already been announced in London.We have changed the Community Infrastructure Levy rules to provide an increased incentive for brownfield development, and extended exemptions for empty buildings being brought back into use.We have also introduced changes to national policy to lift Section 106 burdens on vacant buildings being returned to use or demolished for re-development and made it easier to convert empty buildings into homes.We have introduced a new national Starter Homes exception site planning policy to make it easier to secure planning permission for Starter Homes on underused or unviable commercial and industrial land which is not currently identified for housing - to be offered exclusively to young first time buyers at a 20% discountWe have provided tax relief where brownfield land suffers from contaminationWe have provided access to funding for developers through initiatives such as the Local Infrastructure Fund, Get Britain Building investment fund and the Growing Places FundWe have secured the release of enough unused public sector land to build over 103,000 new homes and announced the establishment of a London Land Commission, based at the Greater London Authority, which will be tasked with identifying public sector brownfield land that is no longer needed in London. We have also, as outlined in Question UIN 227326 of 17 March, implemented a package of proposals to get empty homes back into use.

Communication

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his Department's communications budget has been for each financial year from 2010-11 to 2014-15.

Kris Hopkins: My Department has delivered significant reductions in communications spending compared to the last Labour Government.  Communications administration spend  Administration spend includes media monitoring, printing costs for Parliamentary publications and training, but excludes staff costs. Spending was:2008-09: £2.6 million; 2009-10: £2.0 million; 2010-11: £637,000; 2011-12: £480,000; 2012-13: £347,000; 2013-14: £326,000.   Marketing and advertising spend   This includes all spending on marketing and advertising activities. Spending was:2008-09 £12.7 million; 2009-10: £9.9 million; 2010-11: £898,000; 2011-12: £980,000; 2012-13: £2.4 million; 2013-14: £2.0 million.We anticipate final 2014-15 spend will be in the region of 2013-14 spend.   The marketing and advertising figures can be found in my written answer to the hon. Member of 19 March 2015, Question 222568.   To place this all in context, communications activity under the last Labour Government, including departmental spending such as:· £1.1 million a year on external public relations, despite having 103 in-house communications officers;· £15,000 on plugging the “Sustainable Communities summit” that was subsequently cancelled;· £1 million on marketing and public relations for eco-towns, despite the fact not a single house was ever built;· £3,520 on re-naming Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services to the Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser, during one of New Labour’s republican phases of purging public references to the Monarchy;· £38,200 on sock puppet lobbyists, LLM Communications, astro-turfing friends for the friendless Regional Spatial Strategies;· £1,371 on re-branding of John Prescott’s ‘Office of the Deputy Prime Minister’ to the pointless ‘Deputy Prime Minister’s Office’;· £3,830 on the subsequent logo for the new Department for Communities and Local Government, followed by burning a further £24,765 on dropping the “D” and renaming it “Communities and Local Government”, despite being neither, in a futile attempt to sound achingly trendy.   We have run a tighter ship. Right to Buy and the Fire Kills campaign are now the two primary campaigns we run, and both have a clear public benefit, in strong contrast to the culture of spin and excess in the spendthrift Labour years.

EU Grants and Loans

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of funds under the 2007-13 European Regional Development Fund which were committed after May 2010 have not yet been drawn down.

Kris Hopkins: Holding answer received on 26 February 2015



The full £2.7 billion European Regional Development Fund allocation for 2007-13 has been committed, and is on track and on course for where we would expect to be at this stage in the programme. The programme is worth a total of £2,749,090,730 excluding match funding. Since 1 May 2010, the current programme has contracted projects worth a total value of £1,365,042,943. Of that, £816,874,958 has been paid out from the European Regional Development Fund and £548,167,985 remains to be claimed by grant recipients. All activity, outputs and spend must be completed by September 2015, and recipients then have until the end of December 2015 to submit their claims for expenditure incurred. As outlined to the hon. Member in the answer to him of 26 November 2014, Question 206317, the 2000-06 programme under the last Labour Government was poorly administered; only 93% of the allocation was ever committed, leaving £311 million of uncommitted resources. This Government has overhauled the administration of the 2007-13 programme, and cleaned up the mess left behind on the 2000-06 programme, and at the same time, navigated through the reams of complex European Commission bureaucracy around the programme.

Change of Use

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what monitoring he has undertaken of the results of Permitted Development Rules that allow for conversion of commercial properties to housing; and what proportion of the new dwellings are for social rent.

Brandon Lewis: Holding answer received on 12 March 2015



This Government is committed to providing more homes on brownfield land, and our change of use reforms are helping turn under-used or redundant office space into badly-needed accommodation, at no cost to taxpayers. The policy helps increase housing supply, including greater provision of studio and one-bedroom flats for young people. This policy is particularly beneficial in London, given the high demand for housing. Research published by Knight Frank in May 2014 estimated that nationally, prior approval applications had been secured for over 3.2 million square feet of new housing. An analysis by Planning magazine in November 2014, surveying London, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Nottingham, Manchester and Sheffield, estimated that a total of 17,425 new homes had been given permission across those specific cities. Research by Estates Gazette (EGi) in the year from May 2013 identified 303 schemes across London, delivering 8,924 new homes. The hon. Member may wish to note that in Islington alone, there were 26 schemes which were set to deliver 617 new homes. My Department has been collating formal statistics on office to residential conversions since April 2014. A total of 1,436 prior approval applications were granted from April to December 2014, and a further 1,155 applications were made where prior approval was not necessary. These will deliver a significant volume of housing. Those who seek to oppose these reforms need to spell out exactly where they think new homes should go instead. We do not hold information on the tenure of such dwellings.

Research

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what amount his Department and its agencies spent on research and development in each year since 2010-11; and what proportion such spending was of total departmental spending.

Kris Hopkins: This Government has put in place greater scrutiny and challenge of newly commissioned research programmes to deliver better value for money; we have intentionally sought to cut wasteful spending and unnecessary programmes.Indeed, the last Administration spent £25.6 million on research projects that were commissioned but not published before May 2010, and many of those projects did not represent value for money for taxpayers – as evident by the fact that many were unpublished for years.The table below shows expenditure by my Department on research and development: Year Amount 2009-2010£29,735,2412010 -2011£20,979,5532011-2012£8,478,5422012-2013£6,502,7992013-2014£7,287,7722014-March 2015£6,287,749(Figures prepared on an accruals basis)  Figures on the total spending of the Department can be found in our published accounts. The DCLG Group (i.e. the Department and its agencies) is making a real terms reduction in its annual running costs by around 40% over the period 2010-11 to 2014-15. This equates to net savings of over £640 million over this spending review period. It has not been possible to collate detailed figures from our Arms Length Bodies in the time before prorogation.

McDonalds Restaurants

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 227530, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on the planning system of the decision by McDonald's to move from business to residential areas; and whether he plans to offer guidance to local authorities on taking decisions on applications for planning permission arising from that decision in this matter.

Brandon Lewis: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



We have no plans to wage some battle against McDonalds or any other restaurant. McDonalds has 1,200 restaurants across the United Kingdom, serves millions of customers every day, and creates jobs and opportunities for local people and local businesses. The planning system is primarily intended to control and mitigate the spatial impact of development. Councils can use their Local Plans to shape where retail development should go, ensure the right balance of use classes, and prevent any negative cumulative impact of multiple premises in the same vicinity. The Licensing Act regime also regulates the late night operation of hot food takeaways, in as far as it relates to the four specific licensing objectives (including the prevention of public nuisance). However, the planning system is ultimately not a means for the nanny state to regulate the type of food that people eat, nor is it there to pursue some form of inverted snobbery against Big Macs.

Immigration

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what level of net migration was assumed in his Department's 2012-based household projections for England.

Brandon Lewis: Holding answer received on 23 March 2015



The 2012-based household projections were based on the population projections published by the Office for National Statistics, which can be found at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/npp/national-population-projections/2012-based-projections/index.html These are not a forecast of immigration, nor are they a target. They are derived from broad assumptions, based on previous trends. They do not take into account the impact of the Government’s clear and intended policies to ensure controlled immigration. These include the reforms we have made to strengthen our border and improve the enforcement of our immigration laws. Since 2010, this Government has stripped more than 850 bogus colleges of their rights to sponsor foreign students; cracked down on illegal working and sham marriages; made it harder for people to live in the UK illegally by restricting their access to bank accounts, driving licences, and private housing; and reduced the number of appeal routes to stop people clogging up our courts with spurious attempts to remain in the country.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Kris Hopkins: The information requested is shown in the attached table.Averages and headcount figures have been calculated against staff included in the Department headcount under the Office of National Statistics definition as of 28 February 2015. This includes all staff paid via the Department’s payroll and employed on either a permanent, fixed term or interchange basis. Department employees that did not provide or consent to the disclosure of their diversity information have not been included in the staff numbers or salary averages. Until recent reform staff below the Senior Civil Service in DCLG had contractual pay progression, this linked increases in pay to length of service and it is this factor that is likely to underpin any differences in hourly rate, length of service, rather than ethnicity itself is the causal factor.

Affordable Housing: South East

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much the Government plans to invest in affordable housing in the South East of England between 2015 and 2020; and how many affordable homes he forecasts will be built in that region in that period.

Brandon Lewis: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 25 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

£38 billion public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.The 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme has made initial allocations of £1.3 billion grant funding to deliver almost 62,000 new affordable homes, including £154 million in the East and South East area to deliver over 9,600 homes. The Homes and Communities Agency are inviting bids for the remainder of the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme funding. Approximately £800 million is available. Affordable housing expenditure for England, South East, Surrey and Elmbridge in each year since 2005 is set out below.  EnglandSouth EastSurreyElmbridge £m£m£m£m2013-14965123110.92012-131,0831571412011-121,578224170.92010-112,6604263442009-103,7375654662008-092,6124244522007-082,0293633752006-071,9213754522005-061,577269475 The budget for the supply of new affordable housing in 2014-15 is £1,239 million. However, this under-states the total level of affordable housing investment under this Government. Our Affordable Homes Programme is on track to deliver and surpass 170,000 new affordable homes between 2011 and 2015, and lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment.   A further £38 billion of public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.   We do not publish regional statistics, nor does our housing or planning policy operate on the old Government Office Regions.

Brandon Lewis: £38 billion public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.The 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme has made initial allocations of £1.3 billion grant funding to deliver almost 62,000 new affordable homes, including £154 million in the East and South East area to deliver over 9,600 homes. The Homes and Communities Agency are inviting bids for the remainder of the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme funding. Approximately £800 million is available. Affordable housing expenditure for England, South East, Surrey and Elmbridge in each year since 2005 is set out below.  EnglandSouth EastSurreyElmbridge £m£m£m£m2013-14965123110.92012-131,0831571412011-121,578224170.92010-112,6604263442009-103,7375654662008-092,6124244522007-082,0293633752006-071,9213754522005-061,577269475 The budget for the supply of new affordable housing in 2014-15 is £1,239 million. However, this under-states the total level of affordable housing investment under this Government. Our Affordable Homes Programme is on track to deliver and surpass 170,000 new affordable homes between 2011 and 2015, and lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment.   A further £38 billion of public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.   We do not publish regional statistics, nor does our housing or planning policy operate on the old Government Office Regions.

Affordable Housing

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much the Government has spent on affordable housing in (a) England, (b) the South East, (c) Surrey and (d) Elmbridge in each year since 2005.

Brandon Lewis: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 25 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

£38 billion public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.The 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme has made initial allocations of £1.3 billion grant funding to deliver almost 62,000 new affordable homes, including £154 million in the East and South East area to deliver over 9,600 homes. The Homes and Communities Agency are inviting bids for the remainder of the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme funding. Approximately £800 million is available. Affordable housing expenditure for England, South East, Surrey and Elmbridge in each year since 2005 is set out below.  EnglandSouth EastSurreyElmbridge £m£m£m£m2013-14965123110.92012-131,0831571412011-121,578224170.92010-112,6604263442009-103,7375654662008-092,6124244522007-082,0293633752006-071,9213754522005-061,577269475 The budget for the supply of new affordable housing in 2014-15 is £1,239 million. However, this under-states the total level of affordable housing investment under this Government. Our Affordable Homes Programme is on track to deliver and surpass 170,000 new affordable homes between 2011 and 2015, and lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment.   A further £38 billion of public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.   We do not publish regional statistics, nor does our housing or planning policy operate on the old Government Office Regions.

Brandon Lewis: £38 billion public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.The 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme has made initial allocations of £1.3 billion grant funding to deliver almost 62,000 new affordable homes, including £154 million in the East and South East area to deliver over 9,600 homes. The Homes and Communities Agency are inviting bids for the remainder of the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme funding. Approximately £800 million is available. Affordable housing expenditure for England, South East, Surrey and Elmbridge in each year since 2005 is set out below.  EnglandSouth EastSurreyElmbridge £m£m£m£m2013-14965123110.92012-131,0831571412011-121,578224170.92010-112,6604263442009-103,7375654662008-092,6124244522007-082,0293633752006-071,9213754522005-061,577269475 The budget for the supply of new affordable housing in 2014-15 is £1,239 million. However, this under-states the total level of affordable housing investment under this Government. Our Affordable Homes Programme is on track to deliver and surpass 170,000 new affordable homes between 2011 and 2015, and lever in £19.5 billion of public and private investment.   A further £38 billion of public and private investment will help ensure 275,000 new affordable homes are provided between 2015 and 2020. This means over the next Parliament we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years. Funding is allocated through competitive bidding and there are no top down targets for particular areas.   We do not publish regional statistics, nor does our housing or planning policy operate on the old Government Office Regions.

Holocaust Memorial Day

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what funding his Department makes available for individual Holocaust memorial projects.

Stephen Williams: This Department is firmly committed to sustaining the memory of the Holocaust. We have funded the annual Holocaust Memorial Day on 27 January to commemorate the Holocaust and subsequent genocides. This also includes funding a programme to raise awareness of the Srebrenica genocide. We support the Post Holocaust Issues Envoy to represent the UK in international fora on restitution. We have funded the Anne Frank Trust to educate 35,000 young people and equip them to challenge prejudice and hatred. We have also funded the Wiener Library to help UK citizens trace relatives during the Nazi persecution and contributed to the on going restoration and preservation of Auschwitz Birkenau. On 27 January the Prime Minister announced the formation of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation which will oversee the establishment of the new National Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre. We will initially act as sponsor to this permanent body.

Public Expenditure

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, for which spending announcements made by him or his Ministers since 1 September 2014 the relevant business case has not been made public; and for what reason each such case has not been published.

Kris Hopkins: We do not routinely publish internal business cases; this has been the practice under current and previous Administrations. We do publish Impact Assessment where appropriate.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he expects to reply to Question 224607, tabled by the hon. Member for Tooting on 20 February 2015 for answer on 24 February 2015.

Brandon Lewis: Question 224607 was answered on 24 March 2015.

Fire Services: Floods

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received on introducing a statutory duty on the fire and rescue service to respond to major flooding; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt: In 2012, my Department, consulted interested parties on this issue. The responses supported the Government's view, that the local resilience forums are best placed to decide how to organise local flooding response, as they do for other emergencies. In 2013 the Government amended its flood response guidance to support the work of the local resilience forums, and to affirm that no statutory duty would be needed. The Civil Contingencies Act already requires fire and rescue authorities, and other responders such as the police, ambulance and local authorities, to work together to deal with a range of risks in their area, including flooding. This collaboration worked well during the flood events in winter 2013-14.

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what research reports his Department has commissioned from external bodies between September 2010 and December 2014 has not been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research commissioned for each such report was; from whom each such research report was commissioned; what the value of each such commission was; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reason each such research report has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Kris Hopkins: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Written Statement of 20 March 2014, HCWS438, on what date each of the reports listed was received by his Department; on what date the last payment was made to each research organisation commissioned to produce each of those reports; and for what reason each of those reports had not previously been published.

Kris Hopkins: The attached table shows the details of the last payment dates for the reports listed in the Written Ministerial Statement of 20 March 2014, HCWS438. Final payments are associated with the receipt of draft final outputs from research projects. These reports are from research commissioned under the previous administration, and have continued under the current administration. Reports are not published until the research work is complete and final checks are made. This includes quality assurance and in some cases peer review of the final research outputs which inevitably delays the publication process.  As I explained in my Statement, this Government inherited £26 million of unpublished research reports from the last Administration. I do not have access to Ministerial papers of the last Administration to ascertain the rationale for this.Since 2010 in the interests of transparency, we have been working through the backlog of over 150 unpublished research reports commissioned under the previous Administration. These have been published in groups over this period.  



Reports Data
(Excel SpreadSheet, 12.26 KB)

Parks

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the National Trust on the preservation of public parks.

Stephen Williams: Details of Ministers’ meetings with external organisations are published on-line as part of our transparency agenda. They are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications?departments%5B%5D=department-for-communities-and-local-government&publication_type=transparency-data Through the Community Right to Bid, introduced as part of the Localism Act 2011, communities and local groups can protect local assets, such as parks, playing fields and allotments, by nominating them to be listed by the local authority as an Asset of Community Value. If the listed asset comes up for sale, local community groups can ‘pause’ the sale for a period of time in order to raise the finance to make a bid to buy it. In February, the Department held a green spaces seminar to explore barriers to pursuing innovative solutions to protecting green spaces and to consider what actions central government might usefully take to help remove some of these. The National Trust attended this seminar and presented the approach they are exploring in partnership with Sheffield City Council to create an endowment fund for the city’s parks. This work is being pursued as part of the £1 million Rethinking Parks project initiated by Nesta, Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery.

Planning Permission

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the performance of his Department against targets for the processing of new planning applications.

Brandon Lewis: Planning law sets out the statutory time period for determining a planning application as 13 weeks for a major application and 8 weeks for a minor application (unless an Environmental Impact Assessment is required, in which case the statutory period is 16 weeks) – unless a longer period has been agreed in writing with the applicant. The Government's live tables p151 and p152 set out local planning authorities' speed and quality of decision-taking against these statutory timeframes, for major applications. The Government has also recently published data on local planning authorities' timeliness in determining minor applications in live tables p153 and p154. The live tables are available at www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-planning-application-statistics. Our reforms to simplify and speed-up the application process, and to deal with the few cases where planning authorities are under-performing, are having a positive effect on decision times. For example 77% of major applications were determined on time in October to December 2014, compared with 57% in July to September 2012.

Planning Permission

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average length of time was for a decision to be made on a planning application in each quarter since 2013.

Brandon Lewis: The Government collects quarterly data on planning application decision times by local planning authorities, broken down by six time bands. This information is accessible at live table P120. The Government has radically reformed the planning system to ensure that it operates efficiently in delivering badly needed sustainable development. Decision taking times have substantially improved: in the final quarter of 2012, 56% of major applications were determined on time, and following our changes to speed up and simplify processes by the final quarter of 2014 this had risen to 77%.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Written Statement of 20 March 2015, HCWS 438, on unpublished research reports commissioned by the last Administration, what the evidential basis is for the assertion that his Department commissions research better than did previous administrations.

Kris Hopkins: Since 2010 the Department’s processes for commissioning research from external organisations have been strengthened. All research proposals must meet a set of criteria agreed with Ministers before they can go to tender. These are:Is the project endorsed by Ministers or senior officials or is the proposal something the Department needs to or is reasonably expected to do?Does the project need to be commissioned now or can the work be deferred to a later date?What is the justification for this work?Is the project value for money and is the Department’s share of the cost reasonable? Ministers scrutinise prospective research proposals at an early stage which allows them to influence the research proposal and ensure external commissions meet the Department’s priorities and provide value for money. Fully-developed research proposals are scrutinised by the Department’s Research Gateway panel – which comprises the Heads of Analytical Profession and senior representatives from Finance and Procurement. This panel reviews the proposed research methodologies, costs and procurement strategy to ensure these are necessary and the commission will deliver robust results at reasonable cost to the tax-payer. Project officers are challenged by the panel to justify the need for the work, the proposed cost and the expected outputs. The panel routinely encourages the use of innovative research methods to drive costs down. Opportunities for co-funding are routinely investigated before research contracts are procured. Following approval by the Research Gateway, research proposals are then sent to Ministers for final approval to proceed to procurement. This offers Ministers a further opportunity to ensure that external research commissions are meeting their criteria to deliver robust and cost-effective results. I would add that the last Administration spent £25.6 million on research projects that were commissioned but not published before May 2010, and many of those projects did not represent value for money for taxpayers - as evident by the fact that many were unpublished for years.

Housing

Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on ensuring that new large-scale provision of housing takes place within mixed-use development schemes.

Brandon Lewis: The National Planning Policy Framework states that councils planning policies and decisions should aim to promote mixed use developments.It is for local planning authorities to determine the shape of large scale development locally in the light of local planning policies. The delivery of housing at scale that this Government has supported, for example through our Large Sites investment programme, has a focus on creating strong new communities with development supporting a range of uses.

EU Grants and Loans

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 16 March 2015 to Question 226590, what steps the Government has taken to ensure that all local European Structural and Investment Fund Subcommittees reflect the views of small businesses.

Kris Hopkins: The Government has set out clear expectations for strong business representation in local European Structural and Investment Fund sub-committees. Business groups on local sub-committees will represent the interests of small and medium sized businesses as appropriate to the local area.

Public Sector: Land

Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what comparative assessment he has made of the benefit to the public purse of using surplus public land to (a) generate long-term revenue and (b) generate capital from the sale of that land.

Brandon Lewis: Over the course of this Parliament, Departments have exited unnecessary leases and sold vacant buildings. As a result, we have generated £1.4 billion in capital receipts, and saved £625 million by reducing the annual running cost of the estate. The Government has exited in aggregate more than one building every day since May 2010, reducing the size of our estate by 20%. The One Public Estate programme has already shown that, with small levels of investment and support, a great deal can be achieved. The 12 pilot areas that joined the programme in year 1 expect to cut running costs in the order of £21 million and to raise £88 million in capital receipts by 2018, as well as creating 7,500 new homes and 5,500 new jobs. Local 'capital and asset pathfinder' pilots have found that savings of around 20% are possible from a cross-public sector approach. Public sector assets are worth an estimated £385 billion, with almost two thirds owned by councils. ( Local Government Association Capital and Asset pathfinders Wave 2 summary report). The Government estimates this could potentially save £35 billion over 10 years through better property management. (DCLG press release, 5 August 2011). Further research has suggested that local government could reduce the space that it occupies by 20-30%, with potential savings in running costs of up to £7 billion a year. (Westminster Sustainable Business Forum, Leaner and Greener: Delivering Effective Estate Management, February 2011).

HM Treasury

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff of each grade worked in the Large Business Service team of HM Revenue and Customs in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15 to date.

Priti Patel: Until 31 March 2014 HMRC’s Large Business Service dealt with the tax affairs of the 800 largest businesses in the UK. From 1 April 2014 HMRC’s new Large Business directorate deals with the tax affairs of the 2,100 largest businesses in the UK. LBS (a) 2010-11 Staff in Post end March 2011 SIP by GradeSCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC6114125628135442193121611438 FTE59.08133.12244.1328.00128.43417.67175.84112.5854.131352.98LBS (b) 2011-12 Staff in Post end March 2012  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC6312623821120389180110591306 FTE60.89117.75225.9121.00111.23362.47161.24100.3450.891211.72  LBS (c) 2012-13 Staff in Post end March 2013  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC5412721222111343159121451194 FTE51.87117.97198.4622.00100.58314.24140.22113.1036.471094.91  LBS (d) 2013-14 Staff in Post end March 2014  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC5215625812125389167118261303 FTE50.33148.24243.0112.00113.88356.82147.68105.6120.191197.76e) 2014-15 to date Not Available

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff of each grade resigned from the Large Business Service team of HM Revenue and Customs in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15 to date.

Priti Patel: Until 31 March 2014 HMRC’s Large Business Service dealt with the tax affairs of the 800 largest businesses in the UK. From 1 April 2014 HMRC’s new Large Business directorate deals with the tax affairs of the 2,100 largest businesses in the UK. Large Business Service Resignations by grade   (a) 2010-11  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC1 1  51 19 FTE1.00 1.00  5.001.00 0.588.47   (b) 2011-12  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC 12 1222 10FTE 0.81.41 0.652.001.61.58 8.04   (c) 2012-13  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC1 21121  8 FTE1 2.001.000.31.951.00  7.25   (d) 2013-14  SCSGrade 6Grade 7Band TSenior OfficerHigher OfficerOfficerAssistant OfficerAdmin AssistantTotalHC122  233 13 FTE0.861.282.00  1.692.613 11.44 (e) 2014-15 to date Not Available

Fraud: Taxation

Mr Dominic Raab: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the (a) number of cheques sent to HM Revenue and Customs that were fraudulently intercepted and (b) value of these cheques in each month since December 2013.

Mr David Gauke: The table below sets out the information requested where it is alleged that cheques intended for HMRC were fraudulently intercepted with context comparing these cases with the total number of cheques and related value processed by HMRC.YearMonthNo. of cases reportedValue of cases  Total cheques banked Dec 13 - Dec 142013December19£37,125.42  Volume5,765,106 2014January12£17,889.40  Value£22,127,227,566 February9£28,082.49 March37£106,859.00  Stolen cheques as a percentageApril11£18,496.89  Volume0.0032% May14£29,668.29  Value0.0017% June15£60,297.28 July20£28,223.64 August19£24,241.32 September8£11,732.22 October7£7,135.32 November9£7,799.25 December3£8,747.92   183£386,298.44   HMRC encourages customers, through Internet and other guidance material not to pay by cheque and to take advantage of more secure payment methods and pay electronically.

Communication

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his Department's communications budget was in each financial year from 2010-11 to 2014-15.

Andrea Leadsom: Communication with stakeholders and the public is a part of the job of all Treasury teams.   The costs of running HM Treasury Communication department, including all staff and running costs have more than halved since 2009/10. The figures are:   2009/10 £2,612,258 2010/11 £2,196,291 2011/12 £2,122,484 2012/13 £1,269,977 2013/14 £1,289,075

VAT

Chi Onwurah: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much VAT was refunded under COS14 rules in each of the last three financial years.

Mr David Gauke: The VAT refunded under COS14 rules was £990m in 2011-12, £1,050m in 2012-13, and £960m in 2013-14.

Tate Modern

Chris Leslie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) purchase and (b) installation cost was of the banner used at his speaking engagement at the Tate Modern on 20 February 2015.

Andrea Leadsom: Treasury ministers and officials communicate with a wide range of bodies on a regular basis. All costs are met from within existing departmental budgets.

Banks: Switzerland

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons the agreement concluded with the Swiss Confederation in 2012 on co-operation in the area of taxation included a declaration that the UK will not actively seek to acquire customer data stolen from Swiss banks.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which Government minister was first made aware of files relating to HSBC and tax evasion.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what action was taken immediately after Government ministers were made aware of the files relating to HSBC and tax evasion.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when a Government minister was first made aware of files relating to HSBC and tax evasion.

Shabana Mahmood: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, under what conditions the Government was provided with files related to HSBC and tax evasion.

Mr David Gauke: Information provided to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) by the French tax authorities in respect of individuals indicated to hold accounts at the Geneva branch of HSBC Suisse and understood to be UK residents was supplied to HMRC under the terms of both the Mutual Assistance Directive 77/799/EEC and the Double Taxation Convention in force between France and the United Kingdom at that time:   http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:31977L0799 http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxtreaties/in-force/france.pdf   The Mutual Assistance Directive had been in force since 23 December 1977. The Double Taxation Convention has been in force since 18 December 2009, replacing an earlier convention which had been in force since 1969.   Since their entry into force each of these agreements has been a matter of public record.   It is the responsibility of HMRC to determine the appropriate nature and scope of any response to information received under the provisions of a relevant double taxation convention.   Ministers are not made aware of individual cases due to taxpayer confidentiality. At no point were ministers made aware by HMRC of any suggestion of wrong doing by HSBC itself.   On receipt of the data referred to, a project team was immediately established, led by the then Directors of Risk & Intelligence Service, Criminal Investigations and Specialist Investigations. The then Director—General was the senior responsible officer for the governance of the project.   The data was cleansed, reducing the 6,800 entities referred to in the data to around 3,600 identified individuals with a potential UK connection. Further analysis confirmed that over 3,100 of these individuals could be traced. Following risk assessment, HMRC adopted a range of approaches to ensure that all of those individuals were appropriately challenged over their UK tax compliance. More than £135 million has been recovered to date. The purpose of the UK Swiss tax cooperation agreement is to secure the UK tax compliance of those UK residents holding accounts in Switzerland, through a combination of tax deductions at source and the release of detailed account information.   The groundbreaking agreement introduced by this Government has secured over £1.2 billion, with more to come. This is money coming in to the UK exchequer from a jurisdiction previously beyond our reach and clearly demonstrates how this Government have supported HMRC’s determined approach in tackling tax evasion.   This deal has secured £1.2bn in tax for the Exchequer that we would not have otherwise received. The declaration does not prevent anyone from providing information to HMRC voluntarily or via a third party, and would not have prevented HMRC from receiving the data from Mr Falciani or any other whistleblower.

North West

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the cost was to his Department of the visits and press conferences for the (a) long term economic plans for Yorkshire and (b) long term economic plan for the north-west events.

Andrea Leadsom: The total cost for the Long Term Economic Plan visit to Yorkshire and the North-West was met through the existing departmental budgets.

Advertising

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his Department's advertising and communications expenditure was in each month since September 2014; and what that expenditure is forecast to be in March 2015.

Andrea Leadsom: Treasury ministers and officials communicate with a wide range of bodies on a regular basis. All costs are met from within existing departmental budgets.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Chris Leslie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to reply to Question 224839 tabled on 20 February 2015 for answer on 25 February 2015.

Andrea Leadsom: I have done so.

Marriage: Tax Allowances

Catherine McKinnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the (a) mean and (b) median transfer between married and civil partners under the marriage allowance in 2015-16.

Priti Patel: Information on transferable tax allowance for married couples and civil partners can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/293790/TIIN_2518_transferable_tax_allowance_for_married_couples_and_civil_partners.pdf.

Green Investment Bank

Joan Walley: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, by what date does he plan to grant the Green Investment Bank powers to borrow from the private capital markets.

Mr David Gauke: The Green Investment Bank (GIB) has a budget of £3.8bn and there is no immediate need for the bank to borrow.   As set out in ‘investing in Britain’s future’, the GIB has the power to borrow from the NLF if desired.

Financial Markets

Joan Walley: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 9 March 2015 to Question 225717, if he will request that the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority report on their performance in relation to sustainable growth in their annual reports.

Mr David Gauke: The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 requires the Prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority to include consideration of the principles of good regulation in their annual report.   These statutory principles of good regulation include “the desirability of sustainable growth in the economy of the United Kingdom in the medium or long term”.

Broadband: VAT

Sir Bob Russell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to exempt community groups, charities and other not-for-profit organisations from the requirement to pay VAT on the installation of government-funded high-speed broadband cabinets; and if he will make a statement.

Priti Patel: EU VAT law does not enable an exemption of VAT for the installation of high-speed broadband cabinets. However, the government has provided £1.7bn of direct funding to deliver superfast broadband to 95% of premises by 2017 with over 2 million homes reached so far. The broadband connection voucher scheme has also been extended to March 2016 and will be available in a total of 50 cities by 1 April 2015. The scheme provides vouchers of up to £3,000 to support broadband connection upgrades for small businesses, charities, social enterprises and sole traders.   At Budget we also announced a new ambition that ultrafast broadband of at least 100 Megabits per second should become available to nearly all UK premises, to be supported by market delivery and government action to remove barriers to investment and reduce red tape.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Mr David Gauke: Please see table below for average hourly pay as at end December 2014:Median Hourly Pay £GradeWhiteBAMESpecialist54.6**Range B9.711.2Range C13.013.0Range D16.616.7Range E25.125.0Range E229.4**SCS37.4**

Severn River Crossing

Jessica Morden: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much in VAT revenue accrued to the public purse from the Severn Crossings tolls in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2012-13.

Priti Patel: HMRC have a statutory duty of confidentiality which limits the information they can disclose, including to Ministers. However, I can refer the Honourable Member to the answer given on 18th July 2014 in HL1269, which was based on the company’s accounts.

Budget March 2015

Paul Flynn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish an (a) environmental impact and (b) environmental sustainability assessment of Budget 2015, HC 1093.

Priti Patel: Policies are assessed according to the Green Book principles, which take account of environmental impact.

Arts Council England

Chris Bryant: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the real terms change in Grant in Aid for the Arts Council (England) will be from 2014-15 to 2015-16 using the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast for the GDP deflator; and when the Arts Council (England) was informed of that change.

Danny Alexander: This question can be answered using publically available information at the following links;   Letter from the Finance Director for the Department of Culture Media and Sport to the CEO of Arts Council England on 26 March 2014. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/310064/ACE_Revised_Allocation_Letter_2013_14_-_2015_16.pdf   GDP deflators at market prices, and money GDP. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/gdp-deflators-at-market-prices-and-money-gdp-march-2015-budget-2015

Financial Services

Guto Bebb: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on the decision of the Financial Conduct Authority to withdraw from the Connaught Income Fund Series 1 settlement negotiations.

Guto Bebb: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will request the Financial Conduct Authority to ensure that its investigation into the Connaught Income Fund Series 1 will result in adequate compensation for investors in that fund; and if he will request a timescale for the payment of such compensation.

Guto Bebb: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Financial Conduct Authority on the Connaught Income Fund Series 1 settlement negotiations.

Andrea Leadsom: I was very sorry to hear about the difficulties faced by investors in the Connaught Income Fund Series 1 and hope that the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) are able to finalise their investigation promptly.  On 10 March, the FCA provided an update on proceedings which can be found here: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/fca-statement-on-connaught  The FCA is operationally independent from Government and carries out its functions within the framework of statutory objectives and duties agreed by Parliament. In view of the FCA’s independence it would not be appropriate for the Treasury to comment further on this ongoing investigation.

Tobacco: Counterfeit Manufacturing

David Simpson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps the Government has taken to tackle the movement of counterfeit cigarettes into the UK.

Priti Patel: HMRC’s strategy to tackle tobacco smuggling has reduced the tax gap for cigarettes from 22% in 2000/01 to 10% in 2013/14.   HMRC and Border Force have just published a new joint strategy that sets out a comprehensive range of activity, overseas, at the border and within the UK, to tackle the threat from smuggling of genuine and counterfeit illicit tobacco products.   The strategy can be accessed on the HMRC website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tackling-illicit-tobacco-from-leaf-to-light

Minimum Wage

Paul Blomfield: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 228233, during the 15 inspections in February how many breaches of the national minimum wage were identified following each business inspection; and what remedies have been sought for employees following each such inspection.

Mr David Gauke: The Government takes the enforcement of National Minimum Wage (NMW) very seriously. Any worker who believes that they are being paid below the minimum wage or is aware of an employer who does not meet NMW legislation should make a complaint to the Pay & Work Rights Helpline (PWRH) on 0300 123 1100.   During the course of NMW’s accompanying of the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate in Sheffield, there were no instances of potential non-compliance with NMW legislation identified within the targeted employers.   Where non-compliance is identified, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) take suitable action, ensuring arrears are paid to the workers who are rightfully due them. Any employer found to be non-compliant will be liable for penalties up to £20,000 and referred to the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) for consideration of being named and shamed.

Stamp Duties

Pamela Nash: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much accrued to the Exchequer in stamp duty collected from the sale of properties worth over £1 million in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Mr David Gauke: Information on the estimated yield collected from Stamp Duty Land Tax on residential property transactions over £1m at the UK level within HM Revenue & Customs’s National Statistics.

Synnex-Concentrix UK

Mr Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on what telephone number can tax credit claimants contact Synnex-Concentrix UK to discuss mandatory reconsideration.

Mr Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2015 to Question 226273, what directions have been issued by HM Revenue and Customs to Synnex-Concentrix UK with respect to its contract to process mandatory reconsideration of tax credit claims; and upon what results will Synnex-Concentrix UK be paid.

Priti Patel: Synnex-Concentrix UK Limited is paid on a payment by results model on the basis of savings to public finances from correcting tax credit claims. Payments to Concentrix are also based on the quality and accuracy of their work. The model provides for adjustments for mandatory reconsiderations.   The mandatory reconsideration process is set out as part of HMRC’s contract with Synnex-Concentrix UK Limited.   Tax credits claimants can discuss a mandatory reconsideration of a decision to amend a tax credits award by contacting Synnex-Concentix UK Limited on 0345 600 3130.

Capital Gains Tax

Pamela Nash: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much accrued to the Exchequer in capital gains tax arising from the sale of properties worth over £1 million in the last 12 months.

Mr David Gauke: The information requested is not available. Tax liabilities cannot be assigned at an asset level. Moreover, information on capital gains tax revenue accrued between April 2014 and March 2015 will not be available until October 2016.

Alcoholic Drinks: Excise Duties

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on the effects on people's health of the cuts to alcohol duty in the Budget 2015.

Priti Patel: The Treasury Ministers discuss a variety of issues with Ministers from other government departments throughout the year, including the run up to Budget.

Energy: Taxation

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent representations he has received from the European Commission on his Department's timetable for proposed tax changes affecting community energy societies.

Priti Patel: The Government is in ongoing discussions with the European Commission on the expansion of the Social Investment Tax Relief (SITR). Discussions relating to State aid applications are confidential and the Government is therefore not able to provide any more detail at this stage.   Budget 2015 announced that there will be a transition period of six months following the confirmation of State aid approval for the expansion of SITR before eligibility for the Enterprise Investment Scheme, Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme and Venture Capital Trust Scheme is withdrawn for community energy organisations benefiting from subsidies for the generation of renewable energy.

Annuities

Cathy Jamieson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the figures in table 2.1 of Budget 2015 on a secondary market in annuities, how many people receiving an annuity income will have to reassign that income to a third party and take the value as a lump sum in order to generate the projected additional revenues of £535 million in 2016-17 and £540 million in 2017-18.

Cathy Jamieson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate the Government has made of the additional cost to the public purse arising from additional (a) social security payments and (b) social care costs of people in receipt of annuity income reassigning that income to a third party in order to receive the value of that annuity as a lump sum.

Cathy Jamieson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the figures in table 2.1 of Budget 2015 on a secondary market in annuities, for what reason income tax revenue is projected to fall by £130 million in 2018-19 and £120 million in 2019-20.

Andrea Leadsom: From April 2016, the government will change the tax rules to allow people who are already receiving income from an annuity to assign that income to a third party, subject to agreement from their annuity provider. The proceeds of the assignment could then be taken directly or drawn down over a number of years, and would be taxed at their marginal rate, in the same way as those taking their pension after April 2015.   Details of how the costs of this measure have been calculated including the number of annuities that could be assigned can be found in the Budget 2015 Policy Costings document here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/413895/Policy_Costings_18_00.pdf

Written Questions: Government Responses

Mr Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to answer Question 226273, tabled on 4 March 2015 by the hon. Member for Birkenhead.

Mr David Gauke: I answered the question on 23 March 2015

Companies: Tax Allowances

Pamela Nash: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many rental companies claimed interest relief in each year since May 2010; and how much such relief was awarded in each such year.

Mr David Gauke: This information is not available. Companies with income from property cannot deduct interest as an expense against their property income as they are within the loan relationships regime.

Public Sector: Procurement

Chi Onwurah: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he received from existing large public-sector contractors before deciding to remove VAT charges for private-sector bidders on public-sector contracts.

Mr David Gauke: The Government has received no representations from contractors on this matter.

Public Sector: Procurement

Chi Onwurah: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of removing VAT charges for private-sector bidders on public-sector contracts on drives to increase off-the-shelf ICT purchasing.

Mr David Gauke: There are no plans to remove VAT in relation to off-the-shelf ICT purchasing and thus no assessment has been made.

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research reports his Department has commissioned from external bodies between September 2010 and December 2014 has not been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research commissioned for each such report was; from whom each such research report was commissioned; what the value of each such commission was; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reason each such research report has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department do not hold this information centrally. The information requested can only be provided at a disproportionate cost.

Inheritance Tax

Pamela Nash: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much unpaid inheritance tax was outstanding from estates notified for probate valued up to £1 million since 2005.

Andrea Leadsom: The information requested is not available.

Public Sector: Procurement

Mr Clive Betts: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that other Departments comply with guidance published by his Department in the Green Book (a) on the production and use made of business cases and related matters, (b) that such business cases are normally published in full at the time of the announcement of a public sector spending proposal to which they relate and (c) that where there is a statutory justification for an exemption to disclosure of any part of a business case, such justification will be published contemporaneously with such an announcement.

Mr David Gauke: The Green Book sets out that all new policies, programmes and projects, whether revenue, capital or regulatory, should be subject to comprehensive but proportionate assessment, wherever it is practicable, so as best to promote the public interest. Training and accreditation in the use of Green Book methodology is being extended across the public sector through the Better Business Cases programme, which aims to embed use of the best-practice five-case model in public service culture. In general it is not the Government’s policy to publish business cases, although exceptions are made when the Government considers publication to be of exceptional public interest.

Credit

Meg Hillier: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the progress made by the short-term credit industry on full market participation in real-time data-sharing.

Meg Hillier: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to ensure that full market participation in real-time data-sharing in the short-term credit market includes participants who are non-payday lenders.

Meg Hillier: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward proposals to secure full market participation in real-time data-sharing in the short-term credit market.

Mr David Gauke: The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) new, more robust regulatory regime is improving protections for consumers, including through the introduction of a cap on the cost of payday loans as required by Government.   The Government and the FCA have made it clear to payday lenders that real-time market-wide credit data sharing is key to more effective affordability assessments. In its November 2014 policy statement, the FCA set out there has been substantial progress made by the payday industry, with “the vast majority of the market now participating in real-time data sharing”. The FCA has committed to press the industry for further improvements, and has said it will make rules if it detects any loss of momentum.   The FCA can use its flexible rule-making powers across the consumer credit market where it deems necessary to support its objectives, including protecting consumers.

Credit

Meg Hillier: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information his Department holds on the affordability criteria used by the Financial Conduct Authority to set rules to protect consumers taking out loans in the short-term credit market.

Mr David Gauke: The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market. The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) new, more robust regulatory regime is improving protections for consumers in the payday market, including through the introduction of a cap on the cost of payday loans as required by Government.   The FCA has turned key elements of the Office of Fair Trading’s (OFT) Irresponsible Lending Guidance into binding rules, enforceable with the full range of FCA enforcement powers. These rules strengthen consumer protection and are based on the principle that money should only be lent to a consumer if they can afford to repay it.   These rules set out that a firm should assess the customer’s creditworthiness, having regard to: the potential for the commitments to impact adversely on the consumer’s financial situation, taking into account information which the firm is (or ought reasonably to be) aware at the time;and the consumer’s ability to make repayments as they fall due. Further information on the FCA’s rules can be found in its handbook which is available online: http://fshandbook.info/FS/html/handbook/CONC.

Working Tax Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average length of time was for a decision to be made on a working tax credit claim in each year since 2010.

Priti Patel: HMRC do not hold the requested data.

Working Tax Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of his Department's performance against targets on the length of time for a decision to be made on a working tax credit claim.

Priti Patel: HMRC do not hold the requested data.

Pensioners: Income Tax

Chris Leslie: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the number of pensioners liable to pay income tax in the 2013-14 financial year who (a) did not have online access to and (b) were not sent tax forms by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC); and what steps HMRC is taking to ensure those pensioners have access to such forms.

Mr David Gauke: An estimated 6.25 million taxpayers were over the state pension age in 2013-14. Figures of those pensioners who do not have online access is not held by HMRC.  The Government announced at Budget 2015 the transformation of the tax system over the next parliament by introducing digital tax accounts for all individuals, removing the need for annual tax returns. It will be the choice of individuals whether they use these digital accounts.  For many, the transition to digital accounts will be simple. But for those who have difficulty in going online or who need extra help, HMRC will continue to provide extra help and support.

Welfare Tax Credits

Mr Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the HM Revenue and Customs publication Benefits and Credits, Tax Credits Error and Fraud Additional Capacity Trial, Final Evaluation, published in May 2014, for what reason section 1.7 listed in the contents page, Delegation of Commissioners' Powers, was not included in the body of that report; and if he will place in the Library a copy of that section.

Mr David Gauke: The entry in the contents page of the HM Revenue and Customs publication Benefits and Credits, Tax Credits Error and Fraud Additional Capacity Trial, Final Evaluation, published in May 2014, is a typographical error. The Commissioners executed a formal delegation of powers under the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Rachel Reeves: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to answer Question 227268, tabled on 11 March 2015 by the hon. Member for Leeds West.

Andrea Leadsom: I have done so.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average length of time was that an applicant waited for a decision on a Help to Buy application in each quarter since the launch of that scheme.

Mr David Gauke: The length of mortgage application data is not collected therefore the Treasury does not hold the information to provide an answer to this question.

VAT

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average length of time was for a decision to be made by HM Revenue and Customs related to a business VAT return in each year since 2010.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue & Customs receive over 99% of VAT returns from business electronically. These are processed automatically. We commit to processing all VAT Returns within 8 days of receipt. All returns where a repayment is claimed are subject to an automated risk process, following which HMRC either makes the repayment or carries out further checks. HMRC has a statutory responsibility to take decisions on repayments within 30 days. In cases where HMRC does not achieve this, it is required to pay a repayment supplement. In 2013/14, HMRC met its statutory responsibility in over 99% of cases. Returns where a payment is due are not subject to the same automated risk assessment. Cases are selected for compliance checks on the basis of a range of risk factors not necessarily triggered by individual VAT returns. We therefore do not have information on the average length of time for a decision to be made related to a business VAT return in each year since 2010.

VAT

Steve McCabe: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the performance of HM Revenue and Customs against its targets on the processing and completion of corporate VAT returns.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue & Customs receive over 99% of VAT returns from business electronically. These are processed automatically. We commit to processing all VAT Returns within 8 days of receipt. All returns where a repayment is claimed are subject to an automated risk process, following which HMRC either makes the repayment or carries out further checks. HMRC has a statutory responsibility to take decisions on repayments within 30 days. In cases where HMRC does not achieve this, it is required to pay a repayment supplement. In 2013/14, HMRC met its statutory responsibility in over 99% of cases. Returns where a payment is due are not subject to the same automated risk assessment. Cases are selected for compliance checks on the basis of a range of risk factors not necessarily triggered by individual VAT returns.

Air Passenger Duty

Mike Kane: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the potential effect that reducing air passenger duty on flights leaving UK airports by 50 per cent would have on (a) passenger numbers, (b) aircraft movements and (c) the number of foreign destinations served at each UK airport.

Mike Kane: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the potential effect that reducing air passenger duty on flights leaving Scottish airports by 50 per cent would have on (a) passenger numbers, (b) aircraft movements and (c) the number of foreign destinations served at each UK airport.

Mr David Gauke: The October 2012 HM Revenue & Customs report modelling the effects of price differentials at UK airports did not examine the potential effect of a UK wide reduction in Air Passenger Duty.   Figure 3 of the report provides a reading of the change in passenger numbers at a selection of English airports, on the advent of 50 per cent reduction in Air Passenger Duty at Scottish Airports. The report does not discuss the effect on aircraft movements and available destinations at these airports.

Department for Transport

Railway Stations: South East

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which stations on Southern Railway's Metro line have lost services as a result of emergency changes to the timetable announced on 16 March 2015.

Claire Perry: The timetable changes announced on 16th March did not result in any Metro stations losing services. However, the 16.36, 17.06, 17.38, 18.06 and 18.36 London Bridge to West Croydon services and the 17.12, 17.42 and 18.13 West Croydon to London Bridge services that were removed from the timetable on Wednesday 7 January 2015 have not been reinstated. This affects the following stations: New Cross GateBrockleyHonor Oak ParkForest HillSydenhamPenge WestAnerleyNorwood JunctionWest Croydon

First Great Western

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish the contractual terms of the directly awarded franchise agreement with First Great Western Limited to run passenger rail services on the Great Western line; whether the franchise agreement makes provision for the role of the guard on Intercity Express Programme (IEP) trains; and what provisions for catering services on IEP trains are included in that franchise agreement in (a) first and (b) standard class.

Claire Perry: Following announcement of the Directly Awarded franchise on 23 March, the Franchise Agreement will be published on our website shortly, after the agreement has been through a redactions process consistent with the Railways Act and Freedom of Information Act. Detailed provisions will be available upon publication.

London Bridge Station

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many passengers using Southern Railway's Metro line have been compensated as a result of recent disruptions to rail services at London Bridge.

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average sum of compensation to passengers using Southern Railway's Metro line has been as a result of recent disruption to rail services at London Bridge station.

Claire Perry: The Department does not hold the information requested. However, we will continue to push operators to ensure passengers are aware of compensation arrangements and claim where entitled to do so under the Delay/Repay scheme as set out on the operators’ websites: http://www.thameslinkrailway.com/contact-us/delay-repay/ https://www.southernrailway.com/your-journey/customer-services/delay-repay/delay-repay-form http://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/contact/delay-repay/

West Coast Main Line

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will commission a survey to establish the initial origins and final destinations within the London area of passengers leaving or entering Euston by InterCity services on the West Coast Mainline broken down by the non-London stations at which passengers boarded or disembarked.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport is planning to undertake a nationwide project aimed at collecting origin-destination information on rail passengers. Additionally, Network Rail and Transport for London (TfL) have recently conducted research which looked at origin-destination patterns for passengers using some of the largest Central London termini (including Euston). A published report on the research conducted by TfL and Network Rail is available here:https://www.tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/central-london-rail-termini-report.pdf

Aviation: Freight

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect on (a) Heathrow and (b) Gatwick airport if cargo services were transferred to other airports; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: None, although 1991 Traffic Distribution Rules at both airports prevent any new all-cargo movements being introduced. 65% of all UK air cargo passes through Heathrow with 95% in the bellyhold of passenger aircraft. Gatwick has no dedicated air cargo flights.

Railways

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will place a copy of the tripartite review by his Department, Network Rail and the Office of Rail Regulation of key enhancement programmes that he received on 1 September 2014 in the Library.

Claire Perry: There was not a tripartite review. A working policy document was produced intended to help inform policy decisions. Therefore we are not able to place this in the Library.

Railways

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has received a report in March 2015 from the Office of Rail Regulation assessing the efficient cost of Control Period 5 enhancement projects.

Claire Perry: No report has been received in March 2015 from the Office of Rail Regulation assessing the efficient cost of Control Period 5 enhancement projects.

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what research his Department has commissioned from external bodies between September 2010 and December 2014 has not been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research commissioned for each such report was; from whom each such research report was commissioned; what the value of each such commission was; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reason each such research report has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Claire Perry: The Department commissions a wide range of research to support its objectives. The general presumption is that research results used in the course of the Department’s business should be made available to broaden knowledge and better inform discussion. In a few circumstances (for instance, where the research relates to security matters or where the Department does not hold the necessary rights to publish) such information is not published; but such circumstances are exceptional. Information on publication of the outputs of this research is not collected centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Network Rail: Brixton

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with Network Rail the need to support businesses currently renting properties from Network Rail in the Brixton railway arches.

Claire Perry: Network Rail is an arm’s-length public sector body and the provision of business support to existing tenants affected by Network Rail’s proposed refurbishment of Brixton Arches remains a commercial matter for direct resolution between the parties concerned. Network Rail advises that the scale of the work, which is likely to take a year, means that businesses will be unable to remain in their current spaces. It understands that this will be a serious upheaval for its tenants. Network Rail is already providing help and advice on the next steps. It will work with each individual occupier, provide business support tailored to each of their individual requirements, and work with them should they wish to return upon completion of the improvements. Network Rail will discuss the options available to them, including the phasing of the works and compensation.

M6

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much was spent on maintenance of the M6 between Junctions 31 and 32 in the last four years.

Mr John Hayes: The Highways Agency's maintenance contracts are structured so that Service Providers are paid a single sum for a wide range of general maintenance duties. Payment for these activities is made as per the contract and, by its very nature, is not disaggregated to particular routes. However, I am currently discussing Highways Agency contracts with my officials, and I hope such granularity may be simpler to glean in future.

Railways: North of England

Mr David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to ensure that Northern Rail and First Transpennine Express revise the timetable for Bolton to Manchester trains as a result of the Farnworth Tunnel engineering works.

Claire Perry: The reconstruction of Farnworth Tunnel is an important stepping stone in the ongoing electrification of key rail lines in the North West, which itself is part of this Government’s commitment to over 850 miles of railways electrification by 2019. It is the responsibility of Network Rail and the operators to work together to ensure that a revised timetable is put in place to ensure that passenger services suffer from minimal disruption, balancing capacity and performance, during such essential works. Officials are liaising with operators to ensure that this is happening and are confident that steps are being taken to provide the best level of service for passengers during these essential works. As you may be aware, the temporary timetable has now been released and can be seen on the National Rail Enquiries website.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Mrs Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total cost is of production of the Design Vision for High Speed 2.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The development and agreement of the design vision cost in total £77,000. This included engaging with the design industry, carrying out a survey, running and full day seminar event, carrying out one-to-one interviews with leading designers, and carrying out consultation and development work with key staff followed by the production and print run of the design vision.

Railways

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department has received from Network Rail since July 2014 on potential cancellation of projects because of constraints on capital funding.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport has received no representations since July 2014 from Network Rail relating to the potential cancellation of projects because of constraints on capital funding.

Bypasses: Arundel

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's Road Investment Strategy, published on 1 December 2014, for what reasons improvements to the A27 at Arundel and Worthing are not included in Highways England's Strategic Business Plan 2015 to 2020, published on 9 December 2014; and when that plan will be updated to include that scheme.

Mr John Hayes: I will ensure that Highways England’s proposals for taking forward the schemes identified through feasibility studies, including improvements to the A27, are confirmed in its Delivery Plan. This has been published today and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/highways-england-delivery-plan-2015-2020

Bypasses: Arundel

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects construction of the Arundel bypass announced in his Department's Road Investment Strategy published on 1 December 2014 to (a) begin and (b) be completed.

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the (a) timetable and (b) process is for construction of the Arundel bypass announced in his Department's Road Investment Strategy published on 1 December 2014.

Mr John Hayes: Details of the next steps on the proposed schemes that were confirmed in the feasibility studies, which included the A27, are set out in the Highways England Delivery Plan, which has been published today and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/highways-england-delivery-plan-2015-2020 As a first step, during 2015 Highways England proposes to develop and assess a range of options to inform consultation with stakeholders on the A27 bypasses at Arundel and Worthing/Lancing. Recommendations on the preferred routes for these schemes will be made thereafter.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Energy

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce energy costs within his Department.

Mr David Lidington: I refer the honourable Member to the answer I gave my Hon. Friend the Member for Brighton, Kemptown (Simon Kirby) on 11 September 2014, official report, column 717W.. Hansard source (Citation: HC Deb, 11 September 2014, c717W)

Nuclear Weapons

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the date and agenda are of the meeting in London on nuclear weapons of the Permanent Five Security Council members to be hosted by the Government; and if he will publish on his Department's website a list of all attendees at and the minutes of the meeting.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 09 February 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The London P5 Conference took place at Lancaster House, 4-5 February, and covered a wide range of issues relevant to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, encompassing disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The Conference included outreach with a number of non-nuclear weapon states – Australia, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates – as well as civil society. P5 delegates also visited the Atomic Weapons Establishment; this was part of our efforts to enhance transparency, but appropriate measures were put in place to ensure that our national security interests were protected.The P5 Heads of Delegation were as follows:- China: Wang Qun, Director General, Department of Arms Control and Disarmament- France: Hélène Duchêne, Director for Strategic Affairs- Russia: Grigory Berdennikov, Ambassador-at-Large- UK: Peter Jones, Director for Defence and International Security- United States: Rose Gottemoeller, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International SecurityThe P5 issued a statement on conclusion of the Conference, which is available here: [link to be inserted once live]. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-statement-from-the-nuclear-weapon-states-at-the-london-p5-conference. This captures the key outcomes of the meeting.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The London P5 Conference took place at Lancaster House, 4-5 February, and covered a wide range of issues relevant to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, encompassing disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The Conference included outreach with a number of non-nuclear weapon states – Australia, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates – as well as civil society. P5 delegates also visited the Atomic Weapons Establishment; this was part of our efforts to enhance transparency, but appropriate measures were put in place to ensure that our national security interests were protected.The P5 Heads of Delegation were as follows:- China: Wang Qun, Director General, Department of Arms Control and Disarmament- France: Hélène Duchêne, Director for Strategic Affairs- Russia: Grigory Berdennikov, Ambassador-at-Large- UK: Peter Jones, Director for Defence and International Security- United States: Rose Gottemoeller, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International SecurityThe P5 issued a statement on conclusion of the Conference, which is available here: [link to be inserted once live]. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/joint-statement-from-the-nuclear-weapon-states-at-the-london-p5-conference. This captures the key outcomes of the meeting.

Human Rights Advisory Group

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what he plans to discuss at his first meeting with his Human Rights Advisory Group in the week commencing 23 March 2015.

Mr David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) met his Advisory Group on Human Rights on 25 March. The meeting of the Advisory Group (and its four sub-groups) is an opportunity for a full and frank discussion of the most pressing human rights issues. As such, the agenda and outcome of the meeting remain private.

North Korea

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the report of the United Nations Panel of Experts on the DPRK, published on 23 February 2015, what steps he has taken to prevent North Korean diplomats, officials and trade representatives from engaging in illicit activities.

Mr Hugo Swire: We are concerned by the evidence in the Panel of Experts’ report that diplomats, officials and trade representatives of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) continue to play key roles in facilitating trade of prohibited items. The DPRK’s global proliferation activity not only provides revenue for its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, but also threatens global security. The UK is committed to upholding UN Security Council Resolutions on the DPRK which encourage Member States to exercise vigilance over all activities of DPRK diplomatic personnel. The UK supports the Panel of Experts by raising awareness of the potential for the DPRK to misuse its diplomatic premises for proliferation and procurement purposes, and by encouraging UN member states to identify any illicit activity. In March 2015, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office hosted a visit by the Coordinator of the UN Panel of Experts to the UK, during which the issues raised by the Panel’s report were discussed.

North Korea

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the comments of 20 March 2015 by the North Korean Ambassador to the UK, what assessment he has made of the North Korea's preparedness for nuclear war.

Mr Hugo Swire: We remain deeply concerned by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. The DPRK has stated its intention to develop and deploy nuclear weapons and has conducted nuclear and ballistic missile tests, in violation of UN Security Council Resolutions. While the DPRK has made frequent public statements regarding its nuclear capabilities, it provides little substantive information on the precise nature of those capabilities. We have made very clear that the DPRK must comply with its obligations under all relevant UN Security Council Resolutions. This includes not conducting further nuclear tests, or tests involving ballistic missile technologies. Any further nuclear test will be met by a robust international response.

Mauritius

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the (a) legal and (b) judicial costs to the UK have been of contesting the claim brought by Mauritius under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to date; and what estimate he has made of future such costs.

James Duddridge: The legal costs in terms of Counsels’ fees incurred by the UK in defending the proceedings brought by Mauritius were £681,220. As the award has been handed down by the Arbitral Tribunal, we do not at this stage expect there to be any significant future legal costs.The Tribunal has concluded that Mauritius and the UK should share the costs of the Tribunal in hearing this case. In that regard, the UK has made a payment of 1.3 million Euros (approximately £957,000). We will shortly be receiving a final note of fees of the Tribunal. We understand that it is likely that the UK’s payment exceeded the UK’s share of the Tribunal’s costs and that accordingly, a proportion of the UK’s payment will be remitted back. We therefore cannot at this stage give a final indication of the Tribunal’s total costs.

Jordan

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received from non-governmental organisations on the issuing of work visas to Syrian refugees in Jordan; and if he will raise this issue with the Jordanian government.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We regularly discuss the situation for Syrian refugees in Jordan, including access to work, with non-governmental organisations and civil society representatives. The Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Putney, Roehampton and Southfields (Justine Greening) raised our concerns about the need for refugees to have access to livelihood opportunities with Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour when she visited Jordan in February. The UK is committed to supporting Jordan as it hosts over 620,000 refugees from the Syria crisis, placing an enormous burden on local services and communities. We have provided £220 million to ensure Syrian refugees and host communities can continue to receive food, water and shelter while shoring up stretched public services.

Tunisia

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the statement by the President of the European Council published on 18 March 2015 on support for Tunisia in response to the recent shootings in that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) discussed and agreed the Statement with his counterparts at the European Council on 20 March following the terrorist attack in Tunisia on 18 March. Discussions continue at official level on how the EU will intensify its existing cooperation with Tunisia to counter the terrorist threat and support Tunisia’s political, social and economic development.

Department for International Development

West Africa: Ebola

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much of the UK's funding for Ebola has been spent (a) for each purpose, (b) in each location and (c) on each recipient.

Justine Greening: The UK Government has committed £427 million to eradicating the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, £216 million of which has been disbursed to support the response. This package of support covers the costs of UK operations in the ongoing crisis response, regional preparedness, and early recovery activities.   As part of this response the UK has supported more than half of all the beds available for Ebola patients in Sierra Leone, funded over 100 burial teams, trained 4,000 frontline staff, provided three labs to test one third of all samples collected nationally and delivered over one million PPE suits and 150 vehicles. It is clear that our strategy is working and the numbers of cases have significantly reduced. This is real progress and cause for cautious optimism that we can beat this outbreak.

Developing Countries: Health Services

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of integrating early childhood development interventions on nutrition, immunisation and education on the effectiveness on strength of local health systems; and what contribution such an assessment has made to decisions on the funding of (a) her Department's country programmes and (b) multilateral programmes supported by her Department.

Mr Desmond Swayne: DFID recognises the value of early childhood investments and supports a range of early years’ research and investments, including integrated investments in nutrition, child health, water, sanitation, hygiene and education. Assessment of the impact of these programmes on the strength of health systems are made on a case by case basis at country level. Decisions on country and multilateral investments take account of context, programme objectives, the strength of evidence and analysis of the delivery channels that offer the best value for money.

Syria

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what reports she has received on an increase of arranged child marriages among Syrian refugees in Jordan; and what steps the Government is taking to protect children from such marriages.

Justine Greening: The Government is extremely concerned about reports of an increase in arranged child marriages among Syrian refugees in Jordan. A UNICEF report in January 2014 indicated a rise in the proportion of Syrian refugee girls who had married early (defined as before the age of 18) in Jordan, from 12% in 2011 to 32% in the first quarter of 2014.   Child protection is a central part of DFID’s humanitarian response to the Syrian crisis and we provide multi-year funding to UNICEF to support their work in this area. In addition we also support organisations such as CARE, International Rescue Committee (IRC) and UNHCR. These interventions all have a child protection component. UNHCR and UNFPA co-chair the ‘forced and early marriage’ taskforce, which has developed a joint action plan to reduce the risk and mitigate the consequence of child marriage and forced marriage in Jordan, and to build the capacity of local organisations to tackle this issue. The UK also successfully lobbied the Government of Jordan to sign up to the Girl Summit 2014 Charter which is a global movement to end Female Genital Mutilation and Child, Early and Forced Marriage for all girls everywhere within a generation.

Jordan

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to encourage other EU member states to provide further assistance to support Syrian refugees and the domestic population of Jordan through humanitarian programmes in Jordan.

Justine Greening: The UK continues to call upon all countries to pledge further funding in response to the Syrian humanitarian crisis, including other Member States of the EU. The UK negotiated strong language in the EU Foreign Affairs Council conclusions calling on all Member States to pledge humanitarian aid and longer term assistance to those affected, including the domestic populations of neighbouring countries such as Jordan.

Nigeria

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much UK aid has been spent in support of privatising electricity in Nigeria since 2002; and through which funding streams that aid was provided.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UK has spent £39 million since 2002 supporting the reform on Nigeria’s power system. Of this around £7 million has been spent directly on support to privatisation and around £14 million on market and regulatory reform.   Support has been provided through two phases of the Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility (NIAF) programme. The first phase ran from 2007 to the end of 2011 (and spent £15.5 million on the power sector, of which £4 million was on privatisation). The second phase started at the end of 2011 and runs to December 2016 (and has spent £23.5 million on the power sector to date, £3 million on privatisation). DFID support has helped more than double the power supply.

Developing Countries: Education

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that a long-term, strategic approach is taken to funding of her Department's education projects.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Department for International Development (DFID) works with partner countries to develop, and finance, long-term education sector plans that will deliver good quality education for all children. We also invest in research to inform our education strategy. DFID is, additionally, a significant donor to the Global Partnership for Education, which works to optimise multiple funding flows to national education sector plans.

Developing Countries: Malaria

Mr Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her Department's spend on malaria control was in 2013-14.

Mr Desmond Swayne: In 2013-14 we estimate that the UK Government spend on malaria control was £536 million. This has been calculated using the methodology detailed in the Malaria Framework of Results. This can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/67642/malaria-framework-for-results.pdf.   Malaria death rates have been falling globally since 2010 and the UK investments have significantly contributed to this achievement. According to analysis of current trends by the World Health Organization, by 2015, six high burden countries are on track to halve malaria mortality from a 2009 baseline and another six high burden countries are on track to achieve a 40-50% reduction in malaria attributable deaths. More detail on the UK’s achievements can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/410980/DFID_Mid-Year_Report_Achievements_Annex.pdf.

Syria

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what resources her Department is providing for the reconstruction of Kobane.

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to facilitate a humanitarian corridor between Turkey and Kobane in order to ensure that adequate humanitarian supplies can pass into Kobane.

Justine Greening: No significant reconstruction is yet underway in Kobane, and unexploded ordnance continues to prove a real danger. In the current circumstances a humanitarian corridor is unlikely to be a viable or effective means of meeting needs, since the main obstacle to providing humanitarian aid to Kobane is unexploded ordnance.

Department for Education

Foster Care

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2015 to Question 221699, on which occasions Ofsted has officially reported to her Department instances where a local authority had not complied with the statutory responsibility of six-week visits for privately fostered children.

Mr Edward Timpson: Of the 45 Ofsted inspection reports of local authority children’s social care published under the single inspection framework, our records show that five reports refer to weaknesses in the timeliness of visits to children who are privately fostered. The Department for Education has introduced formal intervention measures for four of the five authorities in order to improve their performance across a range of areas.   Individual local authority Ofsted reports can be found at this link: http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/

Schools: Standards

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many interim executive board applications she received in each of the last five years; how many of those applications were approved; and how many schools subject to an interim executive board subsequently became an academy or are in the process of becoming one.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education does not maintain a record of all applications from local authorities to install Interim Executive Boards (IEBs). Our records show that in the last five years the Secretary of State has approved 325 local authority IEBs. Of these 127 have subsequently opened as academies and a further 36 have been approved to open as academies.   The total number of approved local authority IEBs can be broken down across academic years as follows: In academic year 10-11, 32 were approved. In academic year 11-12, 62 were approved. In academic year 12-13, 88 were approved. In academic year 13-14, 108 were approved. In the current academic year, 35 have been approved.   The Education and Inspections Act 2006 enables local authorities to apply to the Secretary of State for consent to constitute the governing body as an IEB. An IEB can be used to accelerate improvement in standards and attainment and provide challenge to the leadership of the school to secure rapid improvement. IEBs can also be used where there has been a serious breakdown of working relationships within the governing body of the school.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which reports commissioned by her Department from external bodies between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 have not yet been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research so commissioned was; from which individual or body each such report was commissioned; what the value was of each report so commissioned; on what date each such report was received by her Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when she plans to publish each such report.

Mr Nick Gibb: Research commissioned between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 that has been completed is published on GOV.UK.The Government Social Research Service recommends it is best practice to publish within 12 weeks of having a final agreed report. All of our reports commissioned between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 adhere to this protocol.The Department for Education have four reports that are yet to be published that were commissioned between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014. All four comply with the Research Publication Protocol, in accordance with Government Social Research (GSR) best practice.

Afzal Amin

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what contact there has been between Ministers and officials in her Department and Afzal Amin since May 2010.

Mr Nick Gibb: Information in the form requested is not held centrally.

Curzon Institute

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what contact her Department has had with (a) Curzon Education and (b) the Curzon Institute since May 2010; what contracts her Department holds with those bodies; and what the value of those contracts is.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has not held any contracts with Curzon Education or the Curzon Institute since May 2010. An answer with regard to contact the Department for Education has had is not held centrally.

Social Workers

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many bids her Department received for the contract to develop the assessment for Approved Child and Family Practitioner status.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what funds have been allocated for the development of the assessment for Approved Child and Family Practitioner status.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the reasons were for deciding to introduce an Approved Child and Family Practitioner qualification.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what skills and competences the proposed Approved Child and Family Practitioner qualification is intended to measure.

Mr Edward Timpson: The tender process to award the contract for the development of the assessment for the Approved Child and Family Practitioner (ACFP) status is ongoing. The Department for Education, therefore, is unable to answer any questions regarding bidders or contract awards. Once a contract has been awarded, details will be published on https://www.gov.uk.   The Department fully recognises the importance of high quality social workers. We are exploring a new accredited status of ACFP in recognition of the need to have absolute public confidence in social workers who are working with our most vulnerable children: children in need (Children Act 1989); children in need of protection; and children in public care.   The assessment for the ACFP status will test the skills and competencies set out in the statement on knowledge and skills for child and family social work. The statement, drafted by the Chief Social Worker with the input of over 900 social workers, covers the range of skills required of those who are lead professionals for named children and working with them under the local authority’s statutory framework (commonly referred to as “case responsibility”). The assessment will enable social workers to achieve the status of ACFP. The knowledge and skills statement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/knowledge-and-skills-for-child-and-family-social-work

Members

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many times the right hon. Member for Surrey Heath has visited her Department since 14 July 2014; and what the date was of each such visit.

Mr Nick Gibb: The Department for Education does not hold a record of all visitors. The Department does hold records of visitors who have signed out a temporary pass, which could be searched only at disproportionate cost.

Free Schools

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department has spent since May 2010 on underwriting the salaries of staff at free schools when their school did not open or open on time as planned.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education does not have a full breakdown of revenue spent on staff salaries for proposed free school projects.   The total pre-opening expenditure for free school projects that opened or were withdrawn in 2011 to 2013 is published on the Department's website:www.gov.uk/government/publications/revenue-expenditure-for-free-schools

Free Schools

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish a list of free schools indicating how many children have been enrolled at each school and how many pupils are funded at each school.

Mr Edward Timpson: Schools funding data are published annually. This includes data on the number of pupils funded by type of school, so free schools can be identified. The number of pupils enrolled is included in the Census data return, also published annually. The data can be accessed on GOV.UK:   Pre 16 - www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-block-funding-allocations-2014-to-2015 Post 16 - www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-allocation-data-2014-to-2015-academic-year   Schools census data www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2014

Free Schools: Preston

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, who was consulted prior to her Department's decision to choose 55 Guildhall Street, Preston as the site for Eden Boys School for its first year of operation.

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department made of parking, traffic flow and road safety issues when granting Eden Boys School the right to use 55 Guildhall Street, Preston for one year.

Mr Edward Timpson: Under the Class C.2 Part 4 of Schedule 2 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995, consultation is not required for change of use for one year. The Secretary of State for Education notified Preston City Council on 16 February 2015 of the intention to use 55 Guildhall Street as a state-funded school for one academic year only.   The availability of public parking within walking distance of the site was identified by the Department and considered appropriate for the temporary use of the building and the number of pupils. The school is developing a travel plan to minimise impact on traffic and ensure pupil safety.

Mental Health Services: Children

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what specialist support is provided within schools for pupils with mental health problems.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Schools have an important role to play in supporting children and young people around good mental health. Many schools provide their pupils with support services such as counselling. In order to help them do this effectively, the Department for Education published a blueprint for school counselling services, on 25 March 2015. This was developed in conjunction with experts in the field, and provides head teachers with practical advice on how to secure high-quality school based counselling services. More information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/counselling-in-schools. The Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) Association published guidance, funded by the Department for Education, on providing age-appropriate teaching about mental health problems. This guidance can be found at: www.pshe-association.org.uk/emotionalhealth.   However, the Department recognises that teachers are not mental health professionals and need access to specialist support. Our ‘Mental health and behaviour in schools’ guidance, first published in June 2014, provides teachers with information and tools that will help them to identify pupils who need help, provide effective early support and understand when a referral to a specialist mental health service may be necessary. More information can be found here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/mental-health-and-behaviour-in-schools--2.   “Future in Mind”, the report published by the Government’s children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing taskforce, was published on 17 March 2015[1]: It sets out the Department’s ambitions for 2020, including for improved access to support through named points of contact in specialist mental health services and schools. The report also outlines our ambitions for mental health specialists to work directly in schools and GP practices. In order to inform future practice, the Department will be contributing £1.5 million in 2015-16 to a joint pilot with NHS England to test joint training for single points of contact in specialist services and schools.  On 14 March, the Government announced an additional £1.25 billion in funding over five years from April 2015 to secure better access to specialist services for children and young people with mental health problems. This will mean that at least 100,000 more children and young people will receive treatment by 2020, and this funding will pay for the introduction of new waiting time standards. [1] www.gov.uk/government/publications/improving-mental-health-services-for-young-people

Free Schools: Preston

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (a) meetings and (b) representations (i) she, (ii) ministers in her Department and (iii) officials in her Department have had, made to or received from (A) Lancashire County Council and (B) Preston City Council ministers and officials on (1) the temporary siting of Eden Boys School at 55 Guildhall Street, Preston and (2) its subsequent location.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Secretary of State and ministers in her Department have not had any meetings with, or made any representations to Lancashire County Council or Preston City Council, about Eden Boys School in Preston. Officials in the Department submitted a Change of Use planning application for the school’s temporary site to Preston City Council on 22 December 2014 and met with Principal Planning Officers from Preston City Council on 6 March 2015 and the Head of Highways at Lancashire County Council on 17 March 2015 to discuss the temporary siting of Eden Boys School and its subsequent location.

Special Educational Needs

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2015 to Question 222713, what appropriate external support is available to a local area to improve the quality of special educational needs and disability services and their delivery.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has provided funding of £45.2 million in 2014-15 and £31.7 million in 2015-16 to meet the additional costs to local authorities in England of implementing Part 3 of the Children and Families Act 2014. Additionally, a £70 million SEN Reform Grant was made to local authorities in 2014-15. For 2015-16 further support with implementation of the reforms will be made available to parents, local authorities and other organisations.   It is up to local areas to decide what external support to commission and deploy to help them improve the quality of special educational needs (SEN) and disability services and their delivery.   For parents, there is continuing investment in Independent Supporters, worth £15 million per year 2014-15 and 2015-16. A strategic grant with the National Network of Parent Carer Forums and Contact a Family will ensure that parents can help shape local provision and get the help they need. It will include a free, national helpline for parents and ongoing support through e-mail and websites.   Local authorities and their partners will be supported by a network of SEN and Disability Regional Lead authorities, who will facilitate peer support and coordinate activity at a regional level. This will include funding to support the regional supported internships offer. Local authorities will also get help from a new consortium made up of Mott MacDonald, The Council for Disabled Children and the National Development Team for Inclusion. The Consortium will be called Delivering Better Outcomes Together and will manage the SEN and disabilities adviser service, provide specialist advice and support to local authorities and their partners and deliver a pilot training and development programme for senior SEN and disability managers in local authorities. The nine areas are: the London Borough of Bromley; Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council; Coventry City Council; Dorset County Council; Durham County Council; Hertfordshire County Council; Leicester City Council; Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council; and Portsmouth City Council.   A range of grants are also being made across the voluntary and community sector to support their children. These grants will offer specialist advice on specific SEN and disabilities, including mental health. They provide advice to local authorities and their partners across education, health and social care in delivering the SEN and disability reforms, including support to parents and young people.

Educational Psychology

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is mandatory for local authorities to report to her Department the number of educational psychologists they employ.

Mr Edward Timpson: It is mandatory for all local authorities to report the number of educational psychologists they employ via a statutory return; the annual School Workforce Census.

Education: Young People

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what mechanisms are in place to monitor young people to ensure that they stay in some form of education or training until their 18th birthday.

Nick Boles: Local authorities have a statutory duty under Section 68 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 to encourage, enable or assist young people’s participation in education or training. Statutory guidance[1] that underpins this duty directs local authorities to collect information to identify young people who are not participating, or who are at risk of not doing so, and to target their resources on those who need them most.  [1] www.gov.uk/government/publications/participation-of-young-people-education-employment-and-training.

Unemployment: Young People

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department takes when notified of a young person under the age of 18 who is not in education or training.

Nick Boles: The 2008 Education and Skills Act requires local authorities to support 16 and 17 year olds to meet their duty to participate in education or training. Statutory guidance[1] that underpins these duties directs local authorities to act when they are notified that a young person is not in education or training, contacting them at the earliest opportunity and supporting them to find an alternative place in education, training or employment with training. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/participation-of-young-people-education-employment-and-training.

Physical Education: Teachers

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what funding her Department has allocated to the pilot of 200 specialist primary PE teachers.

Mr Edward Timpson: The two year pilot of the primary specialist PE initial teacher training course began in September 2013 and will conclude at the end of this academic year in June 2015. The total cost allocated to the pilot has been £1,110,000.

Physical Education: Teachers

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether any of the twelve providers leading on the recruitment of new specialist primary PE teachers will be based in the West Midlands.

Mr Edward Timpson: There are eleven providers leading the expansion of the primary specialist PE initial teacher training course from September 2015. Bishop Challoner Teaching School, in Basingstoke are working with Newman University in the West Midlands as their accredited provider.

Carers: Children

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2015 to Question 223548, if she will make it her policy to collect information on the number of young carers in receipt of school meals.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has no plans to collect this information centrally.

Carers: Children

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2015 to Question 223375, who her Department has commissioned to conduct the research study into the lives of young carers in England.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2015 to Question 223375, where she plans for the study into the lives of young carers in England to take place.

Mr Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has commissioned a social research company, TNS BMRB, in partnership with the Director of the Young Carers Research Group at Loughborough University, Professor Jo Aldridge, to conduct a national research study investigating the lives of young carers in England.

Special Educational Needs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assistance is provided in schools for children with special educational needs; and what standards and targets her Department sets for the provision and delivery of such assistance.

Mr Edward Timpson: Schools in England have a legal duty to do all that they can to ensure that children with special educational needs get the support they need.  Advice to schools in England on carrying out this duty is given in the statutory guidance provided in the ‘Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0-25 Years’.[1] [1] www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research her Department has commissioned from external bodies between September 2010 and December 2014 has not been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research commissioned for each such report was; from whom each such research report was commissioned; what the value of each such commission was; on what date each such report was received by her Department; for what reason each such research report has not yet been published; and when she plans to publish each such report.

Dan Rogerson: Details for all core Defra’s research projects including description, contractor, cost and publications, commissioned between September 2010 and December 2014 are published online at http://randd.defra.gov.uk/. Defra is committed to publishing the results of high quality research and contractors are encouraged to publish articles in scientific journals. Core Defra publishes final research reports online and exceptions tend to relate to risks to personal or national security or limitations identified by specialist reviewers. The department does not hold centrally a record of which exemption applies to individual research projects.

Government Departments: Timber

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Greening Government Commitments Annual Report 2013 to 2014, published in February 2015, what steps she plans to take to improve implementation of policy on procurement of construction timber and office furniture by government departments.

Dan Rogerson: The Government continues to promote and support the Timber Procurement Policy (TPP). This includes the provision of practical advice to public sector procurers and suppliers through the Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET), which provides guidance and information through a helpdesk and regular, targeted workshops. Central Government Departments report annually on the application of the policy in construction contracts for the purposes of the Greening Government Commitments. CPET is reviewing the certification schemes that support the TPP to ensure they are sufficiently robust, and will report in the summer.   I am writing to Departments reminding them of the importance of the TPP, pointing them to the example of best practice of the Environment Agency as summarised in WWF’s recent report on Government implementation of the TPP, and asking for details of how they are ensuring implementation, for example by including the TPP in contracts and in key performance indicators. The Government Buying Standards (GBS) for Construction and for Timber Products require the TPP to be met. These GBS are now included in the CCS Facilities Management Framework contract, with work ongoing to ensure all future Government contracts include these criteria.

Forest of Dean

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer given by Baroness Kramer on 18 June 2014, Lords Hansard, column 899, what her policy is on transferring the Public Estate Forest Land at Cinderford North Quarter site in the National Heritage Forest of Dean for development.

Dan Rogerson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave to his previous question on 10 March 2015, PQ UIN 226483.

Climate Change

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will invite the Pensions Regulator to submit a Climate Change Adaptation Report looking at the effect of climate change on the UK pensions sector.

Dan Rogerson: The current round of reporting under the Adaptation Reporting Power is already underway and its scope was subject to a full public consultation. The Pensions Regulator was not invited to report.   We will review and consult on the third round of reporting, taking account of our latest assessment of climate risk, during which the involvement of a range of new reporters will be considered.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Ofgem

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many compensation packages for consumers Ofgem has secured in each year since 2001; and what the value was of each such package.

Amber Rudd: Holding answer received on 02 March 2015



The attached table sets out information on compensation packages for consumers obtained by Ofgem since 2001. The table reflects cases where final notifications of fines and redress have been issued and so recent notices of intention to issue penalties and redress have not been counted.



Compensation for consumers obtained by Ofgem
(Word Document, 14.49 KB)

Exhaust Emissions: Respiratory System

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Department of Health on the link between toxic fumes and respiratory conditions.

Amber Rudd: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Fuels: Allowances

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Treasury's announcement entitled Chancellor intervenes to honour fuel allowance benefits of ex-miners, published on 15 November 2013, if he will place in the Library the full criteria used in making decisions on concessionary fuel payments for former miners who worked in private-sector mines; and how many former miners received concessionary fuel payments as a result of that announcement.

Matthew Hancock: A copy of the Ex-UK Coal Concessionary Fuel Scheme Rules following the 15th November 2013 announcement was placed in the Libraries of the House.As at 24 March 2015 the Government are meeting the solid fuel and cash in-lieu entitlement of 1,323 former UK Coal miners and their beneficiaries who had lost their entitlement as a result of the restructure of UK Coal in July 2013.

Energy: Meters

Sir Robert Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment the Government has made of the potential effect of amending the licence conditions for retailers responsible for implementing smart meters so that they may use normative benchmark comparisons as an alternative to in-home displays on (a) the total cost of that implementation project and (b) the likelihood of achieving and sustaining the two per cent electricity and 2.8 per cent gas behavioural energy efficiency savings required for that project to be cost effective.

Amber Rudd: The Government has not made an assessment of the potential effect of amending the licence conditions to enable energy suppliers to offer normative benchmark comparisons as an alternative to in-home displays (IHD), due to the lack of UK evidence that such an alternative to the IHD obligation would provide a similar range and level of net benefit. However the smart metering rules are designed to allow for provision of additional engagement tools including benchmark comparisons. These may complement the information provided by the IHD and deliver additional benefits. Some suppliers are already providing benchmarked energy consumption information.By contrast, GB trials and international experience demonstrate that IHDs are instrumental to energy saving. The recently published findings of the Smart Metering Early Learning Project provide substantial new evidence that it is realistic to expect durable consumer energy savings of 3 per cent provided engagement is effective, and that larger savings are feasible in the future.

Housing: Renewable Energy

Sir Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when he expects to publish the monitoring and evaluation report commissioned by him from Leading Energy into projects in his Department's Renewable House Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Amber Rudd: DECC sponsored the National Non-Food Crops Centre (NNFCC) to undertake the Renewable House Programme in partnership with several other organisations. The NNFCC is planning to publish the final report by Leading Energy on their website this week.

Wind Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many applications for onshore wind turbines based on Government-owned land were made in each year since 2009; and how many such applications received planning consent.

Amber Rudd: The Department does not hold this information.

Coal: Concessions

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Treasury's announcement entitled Chancellor intervenes to honour fuel allowance benefits of ex-miners, published on 15 November 2013, how many former miners who worked in private-sector mines are in receipt of the concessionary fuel allowance as a result of that announcement.

Matthew Hancock: As at 24 March 2015 the Government are meeting the solid fuel and cash in-lieu entitlement of 1,323 former UK Coal miners and their beneficiaries who had lost their entitlement as a result of the restructure of UK Coal in July 2013.

Environment Protection

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will make it his policy to promote a global agreement at the UN Climate Change Conference to provide greater certainty and stability to help unlock private sector investment in green technology; and what assessment he has made of the likelihood of such an agreement being reached.

Amber Rudd: The UK’s objectives for the 21st meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are to secure an ambitious and legally binding agreement that includes mitigation commitments from all countries to help reduce emissions globally, consistent with a path towards the 2°C goal. Further, the UK wants the Agreement to recognise the role public finance, private sector investment and alternative sources of finance can play in ensuring greater investment in green technology.

Longannet Power Station

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the effect on (a) employment and (b) the economy in (i) Fife and (ii) Scotland of the possible closure of Longannet power station.

Matthew Hancock: Commercial decisions on the future of a plant are a matter for the plant’s owner. I encourage all parties to work together to ensure the Longannet workforce remain an important part of any decisions linked to the future of the plant.

Energy Supply: Scotland

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what transmission charges have been paid by power stations in Scotland (a) in total and (b) by each power station in each year from 2005 to date.

Matthew Hancock: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Energy Supply: Fees and Charges

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, which power stations in the UK received income via the transmission charging regime between 2005 and 2015; and how much such income was received.

Matthew Hancock: Payments made to or by individual power stations under the transmission charging regime operated by National Grid are commercially confidential between National Grid and each individual power station.

Longannet Power Station

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what modelling of blackstart capability of Scottish electricity systems has been undertaken by the (a) Government and (b) National Grid in relation to the potential closure of Longannet power station.

Matthew Hancock: National Grid takes their obligation to secure the electricity network very seriously, continuously monitoring future generation and demand via their Future Energy Scenarios and System Operability Framework, designed to provide greater clarity on the likely system impacts of our scenarios. These include highly unlikely and extreme scenarios. In relation to black starts, there are local restoration plans in place for Scotland which are regularly reviewed and updated. The most recent update was this year and it will be reviewed again following the award of the voltage control contract from the recent procurement exercise. The target capability for restoration after a black start is within 24 hours. Even in the case of closure of Longannet, the restoration times stay within this target, and supplies are set to be secure. We have measures in place to ensure security of supply with or without Longannet.

Longannet Power Station

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what modelling of voltage control of the Scottish electricity system has been undertaken by (a) the Government and (b) the National Grid in relation to the potential closure of Longannet power station.

Matthew Hancock: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Longannet Power Station

Mr Mike Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what modelling of security of electricity supply in Scotland has been undertaken by the (a) Government and (b) National Grid in relation to the potential closure of Longannet power station.

Matthew Hancock: National Grid continually assess the risks to security of supply across Great Britain, including in Scotland, and are confident they have the tools to address any issues, including Longannet and other fossil-fuelled plant closing.Even excluding unabated coal, which all major national parties have committed to close, Scotland has extensive and diverse electricity production including a Combined Cycle Gas Turbine plant at Peterhead which is investing in Carbon Capture and Storage; two nuclear power stations; onshore and offshore wind; and pumped storage. Scotland also gains increased security of supply from integration within the British energy market so that the full diversity of generators in England and Wales can also supply Scotland.In terms of modelling the security of electricity supply, the Government and National Grid assess there will be enough generation to meet demand and maintain system stability in Scotland even if one or more major fossil fuelled plant closes. National Grid, Scottish Power Transmission and Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission (the system operator and the transmission owners in Scotland) provide analysis and advice to Government. They have stress tested 140 scenarios in which Longannet and other Scottish fossil fuelled generators closed. National Grid has the tools to secure supplies even the toughest system conditions, and the network is resilient against 1 in 600 year risks.National Grid published the advice that it provided to my rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State and the Scottish government on this issue on their website last week:http://www2.nationalgrid.com/UK/Services/Balancing-services/System-security/Transmission-Constraint-Management/Transmission-Constraint-Management-Information/.

Energy: Competition

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent steps he has taken to increase competition in the energy supply market.

Matthew Hancock: There are now 21 independent suppliers in the domestic retail market providing more competition and choice for consumers.The Government has made it quicker and easier for consumers to switch supplier. We have supported Ofgem’s reforms to make the retail market simpler, clearer and fairer and to increase liquidity in the wholesale electricity market.In addition the Government has backed Ofgem’s referral of the energy market for investigation by the Competition and Market Authority.

Renewable Energy

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the estimates contained in the OECD report, Nuclear Energy and Renewables: System Effects in Low-carbon Electricity Systems, 2012 of the additional system costs of onshore and offshore wind and solar power if they reach 10 per cent and 30 per cent penetration of the UK electricity market.

Amber Rudd: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Renewable Energy

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will make an assessment of the total extra system costs of meeting the target of generating 30 per cent of electricity from renewables by 2020 compared with continuing to rely on conventional sources of electricity generation including fossil fuels.

Amber Rudd: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Radioactive Waste

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what proposals were put forward to his Department by Copper Consulting of Bristol in respect of the proposed designation of the geological disposal facility for nuclear waste as a nationally significant infrastructure project.

Matthew Hancock: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

MOZES

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether his Department has received a report from Ray Noble relating to the Mozes community energy cooperative.

Amber Rudd: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Deputy Prime Minister

British Constitution

Miss Anne McIntosh: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) First Minister of Scotland and (b) Secretary of State for Scotland on the Government's agenda for constitutional reform; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Nick Clegg: My officials, ministers and I​ maintain regular contact with the devolved administrations on matters of mutual interest, including constitutional reform​. Details of such exchanges are not usually published.

Devolution: England

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what progress he has made on further devolution in England.

Greg Clark: I refer the member of Romford to the response I gave the member for Crawley during oral questions on Tuesday 24 March, column 1273.

Attorney General

Surveys

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Attorney General, what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff in the Law Officers' Departments responded that they were treated fairly at work in the most recent Civil Service People Survey.

Jeremy Wright: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Surveys

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Attorney General, what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff in the Law Officers' Departments reported experiencing bullying or harassment at work in the most recent Civil Service People Survey.

Jeremy Wright: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Conditions of Employment

Pamela Nash: To ask the Attorney General, how many staff in the Law Officers' Departments and its executive agencies and associated bodies were engaged off-payroll in each of the last five years up to the most recent period for which figures are available.

Mr Robert Buckland: The information requested is contained in the following tables.The table below shows the average number of staff engaged off-payroll over the past five years by the Attorney General’s Office (AGO), Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI), and the Treasury Solicitor’s Department (TSol).Tsol, AGO and HMCPSI - Average number of staff engaged off-payroll1PeriodAverage HeadcountApril 2014 – February 2015263April 2013 – March 2014197April 2012 – March 2013127April 2011 – March 201291April 2010 – March 20111031 Off payroll staff includes temporary (agency) and contract staff, including lawyers, other professionals and administrators. None of the above mentioned staff members are civil servants. The majority are temporary staff engaged through employment agencies to cover short term vacancies and to secure specific specialist legal and support skills. Prior to April 2014 the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) did not maintain a centralised record of staff employed off-payroll and it is not possible to provide information at the level of detail requested. The SFO can, however, provide an average number of temporary staff employed since April 2010. These figures are as follows:SFO - Average number of temporary staff engaged off-payrollPeriodAverage HeadcountApril 2013 – March 201435April 2012 – March 201329April 2011 – March 201251April 2010 – March 201198At the end of December January 2015 there were 86 temporary staff working at the SFO. The average number of staff in the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) who were engaged off-payroll during each of the last five years up to the most recent period for which figures are available is shown in the table below. CPS - Average number of temporary staff engaged off-payroll1PeriodAverage HeadcountApril 2014 – January 20157.7April 2013 – March 20146April 2012 – March 20131.9April 2011 – March 20125.1April 2010 – March 2011201 The figures in the table have been calculated by taking relevant workforce statistics published each month and deriving an average for each financial year. It is possible, therefore, that the number of unique individuals employed during any financial year was higher than that indicated.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Attorney General, what the average hourly pay is of employees in the Law Officers' Departments identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Mr Robert Buckland: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Wales Office

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the average hourly pay is for employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Alun Cairns: Wales Office staff are not directly employed by the Department and are subject to Ministry of Justice policies for pay purposes.

Ministry of Justice

Prisons: Restraint Techniques

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents of use of force resulted in (a) minor and (b) serious injuries in each private prison in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Andrew Selous: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 23 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Andrew Selous: The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Prisons: Restraint Techniques

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents of use of force there were in each private prison in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Andrew Selous: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 23 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.  Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Andrew Selous: The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.  Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Prisons: Restraint Techniques

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners have been transferred to an external hospital following an incident of use of force in each private prison in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Andrew Selous: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 23 March 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.  Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Andrew Selous: The number of violent criminals in our prisons has increased by 40% in the past 10 years. A specialised system of restraint known as control and restraint (C&R) has been developed over many years to ensure that prisoners can be controlled with minimum risk of injury to staff or prisoners. C&R is a system of techniques used by a team of three officers as a last resort to bring a violent or refractory prisoner under control. Wherever possible staff should avoid the use of force and de-escalate the situation by persuasion or negotiation; if the techniques are applied then they are used for as short a time as possible. Healthcare staff examine all prisoners on whom force has been used. Violence in prisons is not tolerated; and assaults on our hardworking staff are unacceptable. That is why we have introduced a new protocol establishing that when there are serious assaults on prison staff, the perpetrators must be prosecuted unless there is a good reason why not. This will ensure that prisoners who attack staff are prosecuted and fully brought to justice. It will mean that more of the prisoners who assault staff will spend longer behind bars. All prisons submit a central monthly return providing the number of times force has been used in the prison with details of any injuries sustained. Central data identifies the number of individuals injured rather than the number of incidents where an injury occurred . Use of force incidents may involve multiple prisoners, for example, force used to separate a fight. To identify the number of incidents would require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. Central data only records whether an injury resulted in hospitalisation or not. To identify if the injuries sustained were minor or serious would also require manual interrogation of use of force documentation held at establishments and could only be achieved at disproportionate cost. The table below provides details of the number of prisoners hospitalised following an incident where force was used in contracted prisons.  Prisoners requiring hospitalisation following use of force, by year and establishment Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse0001032Ashfield01300Birmingham211129Bronzefield00015Doncaster0201010Dovegate20128Forest Bank00002Lowdham Grange00083Northumberland--042Oakwood--117Parc01018Peterborough01434Rye Hill20036Thameside--0112TOTAL 662046108  Note to tables:1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.  Establishment20102011201220132014Altcourse00000Ashfield01310Birmingham-01123Bronzefield00010Doncaster02011Dovegate20115Forest Bank00000Lowdham Grange00020Northumberland--001Oakwood--114Parc01000Peterborough01000Rye Hill20000Thameside--010Wolds0000-TOTAL 45161014  Note to tables: 1. “-“ denotes note applicable2. HMP Ashfield re-rolled from a Young Offender Institution to adult male category C prison in May 2013.3. G4S took responsibility for HMP Birmingham October 2011. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector. 4. Sodexo took responsibility for HMP Northumberland in December 2013. Figures provided are for the full calendar year.5. HMP Oakwood opened in April 20126. HMP Thameside opened in March 20127. These figures are derived from monthly aggregated Use of Force returns from each prison.8. A new system for collecting this data was introduced in late 2013 and data recording is likely to have improved. Care should therefore be taken when comparing changes over time.9. The Wolds ceased to be operated as a private prison, returning to the public sector in July 2013. Figures provided are for the part of the year when it was operated in the private sector.

Prisoners: Clothing

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the findings were of the research commissioned by the equalities policy lead in his Department into the needs of male and female prisoners to determine whether they are sufficiently different to warrant a different approach on the issue of prison clothing; and if he will place in the Library a copy of that research.

Andrew Selous: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Research

Mr David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which reports commissioned by his Department from external bodies between 1 September 2010 and 31 December 2014 have not yet been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research so commissioned was; from which individual or body each such report was commissioned; what the value was of each report so commissioned; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reasons the research has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Mr Shailesh Vara: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Prisoners

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which offences prisoners serving a sentence of 12 months or less committed over the course of the most recent year for which information is held.

Andrew Selous: Whilst crime is falling, since 2010 offenders are more likely to go to prison and for longer. Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for our independent judiciary, taking account of all the circumstances of each case. The Government has reformed how short custodial sentences are served. Under the Offender Rehabilitation Act 2014, all those serving custodial sentences must now be subject to 12 months of supervision following their release. This means that sentenced offenders leaving prison will spend at least 12 months under supervision, and they will be liable to be sent back to prison if they breach their conditions, where previously around 45,000 prisoners have been released each year with no statutory oversight. These new statutory requirements have been combined with a significant new approach to rehabilitation under which Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) – which bring together the best of the public, private and voluntary sectors – are working in new and innovative ways to tackle re-offending, and will be paid according to the results they achieve.  Latest available information on the number of prisoners serving an immediate custodial sentence of 12 months or less, by offence group, in England and Wales can be viewed in the table below.  Prison population serving a sentence of 12 months or less by offence group, 2014, England and Wales   31-Dec-1331-Mar-1430-Jun-1430-Sep-1431-Dec-14   Violence against the person1,6351,6821,7041,7251,682   Sexual offences317328302320295   Robbery17416014711890   Burglary551535491....   Theft and handling2,2822,3722,270....   Fraud and forgery262262236211225   Drug offences356413398381332   Motoring offences390434430413403   Other offences1,7241,8721,8001,8241,681   Offence not recorded6712211510968   Total7,7588,1807,8937,7927,218 Data Sources and QualityDue to continuing problems with data quality, reporting on the populations in the 'Burglary' and 'Theft and Handling' offence groups has been disrupted between 1 July and 31 December 2014. This is because, for statistical purposes only, some prisoners have been mis-allocated between these two offence groups. The reporting of these figures has therefore been postponed pending further investigation.These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to respond to the written Questions tabled by the hon. Member for Shipley where a letter was promised but has not yet been sent.

Mike Penning: I can confirm that the department has responded to all outstanding written Questions where a letter was promised and copies of the letters have been placed in the House library.

Bail: Crimes of Violence

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2015 to Question 208575 on bail what the individual offences were within the violence against person category referred to in the table.

Mike Penning: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Leasehold: Forfeiture

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many cases there have been of residential leasehold forfeiture in the last five years; how many such cases were presented to the county courts; and how many residential leases were forfeited.

Mr Shailesh Vara: HM Courts & Tribunals Service’s IT systems are not able to determine and collate with accuracy the number of residential leasehold forfeiture cases presented in the last five years and the number of residential leases that were forfeited. The Ministry of Justice does, however, publish statistics on the number of landlord possession actions in the County Court across England and Wales. These statistics are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/mortgage-and-landlord-possession-statistics. A manual search of these landlord possession cases would be required in order to identify the specific number of residential leasehold forfeiture claims presented and the number of leases forfeited. The retention period for landlord possession case files is three years. A manual search of these files could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Sentencing Guidelines Council

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much it cost to run the Sentencing Guidelines Council in (a) 2011, (b) 2012, (c) 2013 and (d) 2014.

Mike Penning: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Telephone Services

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance has been issued to Government departments on the use of premium rate numbers to access public services.

Mr Francis Maude: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Parkinson's Disease

Alison McGovern: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people died of Parkinson's disease in England in each of the last five years.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Parkinson Disease Death
(PDF Document, 119.1 KB)

Unemployment: Learning Disability

Mr Chuka Umunna: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people with learning difficulties who wished to work but were unemployed there were in (a) Streatham constituency, (b) Lambeth local authority area and (c) the UK in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Learning Difficulties
(PDF Document, 135.04 KB)

Jobseeker's Allowance: North East

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the ONS nomis database, of the 5,030 people in the North East who ceased to claim jobseeker's allowance in January 2015 for other reasons, how many (a) ceased claiming, (b) failed to sign, (c) went on to full-time education, (d) went abroad, (e) reached retirement age, (f) passed away and (g) did so for unknown reasons.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Jobseekers Allowance
(PDF Document, 121.2 KB)

Personal Income: Blackpool

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the median income from work was of residents of Blackpool South constituency in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015 to date.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Median Income
(PDF Document, 154.27 KB)

Pay: Blackpool

Mr Gordon Marsden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of people in employment in Blackpool South constituency were earning (a) the minimum wage or below and (b) the living wage or below in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012, (iv) 2013, (v) 2014 and (vi) 2015.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Living Wage
(PDF Document, 121.67 KB)

Conditions of Employment

Pamela Nash: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people were employed on zero-hours contracts in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) England, (d) Wales and (e) Northern Ireland in each year since May 2010.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Zero Hour Contracts
(PDF Document, 140.37 KB)

Public Sector: Assets

Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the success of the One Public Estate Programme in increasing co-ordination across the public sector on the use of public land and buildings; and what plans he has to expand that programme in the next Parliament.

Mr Francis Maude: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Personal Income

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the change in the average gross income of an employee in the (a) private and (b) public sector between the 2010-11 and 2015-16 financial years.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply. 



ONS Letter to Member - Average Gross Income
(PDF Document, 124.07 KB)

Department for Culture Media and Sport

Communication

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what his Department's communications budget has been for each financial year from 2010-11 to 2014-15.

Mrs Helen Grant: Holding answer received on 02 February 2015



The department’s budgets for Publicity and Communications – excluding pay costs are set out below:2010/11 - £1,099k2011/12 - £966k2012/13 - £674k2013/14 - £283k2014/15 - £403k Budgets in 2010/11, 2011/12 and 2012/13 reflect the costs associated with the preparation for, and delivery of, the hugely successful Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. The budget for 2014/15 has been increased to provide for the work associated with the planned events at home and abroad to commemorate the centenary of the First World War

Mobile Phones

Miss Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his Department has had with mobile network operators on complete not-spots where sites are not eligible for Mobile Infrastructure Project funding.

Mr Edward Vaizey: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Pay

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the average hourly pay is of employees at each grade within his Department identified as (a) White or White British and (b) from a Black, Asian or other minority ethnic group.

Mrs Helen Grant: From the HR Oracle Database, the breakdown of hourly pay for those with more than 5 people in each category is laid out in the attached table.



Table for PQ 228307
(Excel SpreadSheet, 13.17 KB)

Sports: Sight Impaired

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to increase participation of blind people in sport.

Mrs Helen Grant: Between 2014 and 2017 Sport England is investing £296,636 in British Blind Sport to get more blind people playing sport. The funding will provide impairment-specific support to National Governing Bodies and deliver programmes designed to increase the number of blind people who regularly take part in sport. In addition, Sport England is investing over £90 million between 2013-17 in National Governing Bodies to get more disabled people playing sport through the delivery of inclusive and impairment-specific programmes, including programmes for blind people.

Sports: Cerebral Palsy

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to increase participation of people with cerebral palsy in sport.

Mrs Helen Grant: Between 2014 and 2017 Sport England is investing £265,882 in Cerebral Palsy Sport to get more people with cerebral palsy playing sport. The funding will provide impairment-specific support to National Governing Bodies and deliver programmes designed to increase the number of people with cerebral palsy who regularly take part in sport. In addition, Sport England is investing over £90 million between 2013-17 in National Governing Bodies to get more disabled people playing sport through the delivery of inclusive and impairment-specific programmes, including programmes for people with cerebral palsy.

Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the legacy of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Mrs Helen Grant: The legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games includes:· 1.6 million more people, including over 260,000 more disabled people, are playing sport once a week than when we won the bid for the Games back in 2005· over £14 billion of economic benefits have been realised in terms of trade and investment following the Games and Games-time promotional activity· all permanent venues on the Park have a secured legacy use, more than 4.5 million people have visited Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park since it re-opened, and over 4,500 people are now living in the former Athletes' Village· volunteering in England increased in 2012 after a period of decline, with an increase from 65% to 72% of the population who had volunteered at least once in the previous 12 months, an increase that has been maintained since.I have reported to Parliament regularly on the sporting legacy from the 2012 Games. My most recent report was made in a written ministerial statement on 5 March 2015, Hansard columns 72-76/WS. In addition government and the Mayor of London produce joint annual reports on the Games' legacy. The most recent report, 'Olympic and Paralympic legacy: inspired by 2012 - second annual report' is on the gov.uk website at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-olympic-and-paralympic-legacy-inspired-by-2012-second-annual-report .

National Lottery

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding has been allocated to (a) the arts, (b) sport and (c) heritage from the National Lottery in each of the last eight years for which figures are available; and what the aggregate equivalent figures are for (i) the arts, (ii) sport and (iii) heritage from (A) 2006 to 2010 and (B) 2010 to 2014.

Mrs Helen Grant: The figures are set out in the table below: GOOD CAUSE2006-2007£m2007-2008£m2008-2009£m2009-2010£m2010-2011£m2011-2012£m2012-2013£m2013-2014£mAGGREGATE2006-2010£m2010-2014£m ARTS2132172082052172643633398431,183SPORT2132172102152272743683398551,208HERITAGE2312172082052172643633398611,183  (NOTE: figures are taken from the National Lottery Distribution Fund Annual Report and Accounts and show total NLDF income allocated to the Arts, Sports and Heritage Good Causes, net of Olympic transfers and operational costs. These are cash figures.)

National Lottery

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what changes to the proportion of National Lottery funding committed to (a) the arts, (b) sport and (c) heritage there have been in the last five years.

Mrs Helen Grant: A. In 2010 the Government announced its intention to revert to the original funding allocations for Arts, Sports and Heritage Good Causes. This saw the proportions shift in two phases from 16.66% to 20% over 2011-2013.

Research

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what research reports his Department has commissioned from external bodies between September 2010 and December 2014 have not been published; when each such report was commissioned; what the nature of the research commissioned for each report was; from whom each such research report was commissioned; what the value of each such commission was; on what date each such report was received by his Department; for what reason each such research report has not yet been published; and when he plans to publish each such report.

Mrs Helen Grant: This table shows research commissioned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport between September 2010 and December 2014 which is yet to be published. Research TitleNature of ResearchExternal contractorValue of workThe Local economic impacts from cultural sector investmentsThe purpose of this report is to bring together the best evidence of local economic impacts from culture into one report which could inform the department’s evidence base on the value of culture. The purpose was also to aid others in making the case for culture whether it’s local government, ALBs or the culture sector more widely.ECORYS£20,303Publication of Child Taking Part Survey: Multivariate analysis of the determinants of child participation in arts, sport, heritage, museums and libraries.To explore the factors most strongly associated with child participation in arts, sport, heritage, museums and libraries, both in and outside of school. Commissioned by the Culture and Sport Evidence (CASE).Sheffield Hallam University, Sport Industry Research Centre (SIRC)£21,156Outlook and structure of publicly funded organisations in culture, heritage and sportsProgramme of research scoping the extent to which local sport and cultural organisations can be surveyed to provide information on their business practices and underlying attitudes towards ensuring resilience during times of difficult economic operating climate.BOP consulting£79,575 The Department has yet to identify appropriate events or publication opportunities for the 3 named pieces of research.

Mobile Phones: Northern Ireland

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the rollout of the Mobile Infrastructure Project in Mid Ulster; and how much has been paid to Arqiva for the rollout of that project in that area to date.

Mr Edward Vaizey: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Mobile Phones: Northern Ireland

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress has been made on the rollout of the Mobile Infrastructure Project in Fermanagh and South Tyrone; and how much has been paid to Arqiva for the rollout of that project in that area to date.

Mr Edward Vaizey: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Mining: Monuments

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will support the erection of memorials to miners who lost their lives whilst working in the pits during the First and Second World Wars.

Mr Edward Vaizey: There is a tradition of funding new memorials through public subscription. We support this and experience has shown that there are often other funders, including the private sector, happy and willing to fund new memorials.The DCMS ​does additionally administer the DCMS Memorial Grant Scheme which makes grants towards the VAT incurred by charities and faith groups in the construction, repair and maintenance of public memorial structures. The scheme has a fixed budget of £0.5m per year.

House of Commons Commission

ICT

Chi Onwurah: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, if Parliamentary ICT will trial device-independent software supporting open standards such as that used by the Cabinet Office.

John Thurso: Parliamentary ICT is trialing and will continue to trial device-independent software supporting open standards. Examples include using HTML5 to deliver services that are responsive in design and accessible on any device.

CDs and DVDs

Dame Joan Ruddock: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2015 to Question 227858, if he will estimate how many unsolicited CDs and DVDs hon. Members received by post at their offices on the parliamentary estate in the last 12 months.

John Thurso: The House Service has no access to information on which it could base a realistic estimate.